Emblem Star
by Bluesaber3
Summary: A collaborative mystery crossover I'm writing with Liv :D Genres may change. Romance included :D
1. A Sword and a Strong Mind

**Welcome, my wonderful readers, to_ Emblem Star_, a collaborative fanfic I'm doing with Liv (my epic BFF, you'll remember her from NSNW3 chapter 12 "The Epic Game" and "Hoshii no Jedi", which barely anyone read. XD) (p.s., say happy birthday to her! It's her birthday! I LUV YOU MIAMI! Yes, Miami is Liv. They're the same person, ok? THIS IS SO CONFUSING! ok never mind XDDD)**

**This story is a Clone Wars crossover, but what it's a crossover _with _will remain a mystery until the appointed time. ;)**

**Anyway, please enjoy the story! :D**

**(update: typo(s) have been fixed)**

_**Emblem Star**_

_**Chapter 1: A Sword and a Strong Mind**_

The sun hung in the sky lazily on Coruscant that afternoon. Ahsoka Tano stood on the landing platform at the Jedi Temple, looking up at the bright, blue sky. Hearing someone approaching from behind, she turned around, finding her master, Anakin Skywalker, walking up to her. "Is there a mission for us?" she asked him.

Shaking his head, Anakin sighed. "Nope... the Separatists have been really quiet lately."

"I know... it's so strange..." Ahsoka turned around and began to walk back to the Jedi Temple, when she spotted something—or someone—not too far away. Looking confused, she went over for a better look. When she got closer, she gasped.

Laying face-down on the ground in front of her was a girl, unconscious, about a year or so older than herself. The girl's brown hair was splayed out on the ground. A dark green cape covered her back like a blanket.

"Master!" Ahsoka called, motioning for him to come over.

Anakin walked over and his eyes widened as he spotted the girl. Without a word, he gently took hold of her shoulder and turned her over onto her back.

The girl's clothes seemed strange, a style neither of them had really seen before. She wore a green tunic and light tan leggings tucked into brown, knee-high boots. Forest green shoulder pads with yellowish-green trim adorned her shoulders. A leather belt was wrapped around her waist, and attached to another belt underneath it was a sheathed sword. A cut along her right arm was very noticeable. The cut trailed from her wrist up to a stop a little higher than her elbow. It wasn't deep, but it was still bleeding. A lot. The charcoal gray fingerless glove on her right hand already had a maroon stain along it.

Ahsoka wondered about her interesting clothing, and the sword. _You don't see too many swords around here..._

Anakin, on the other hand, had other thoughts on his mind. "That cut looks pretty bad. Let's get her to the Jedi Healers."

Ahsoka nodded and watched as Anakin lifted the girl bridal-style into his arms, and the two began to make their way to the Jedi Healers.

…

The girl felt her mind shift slightly from the dream world back into reality. She opened her eyes slowly as she awoke, trying to make out what she was seeing. She was lying on her back, on a long bed. She noticed two figures sitting across the room. One was a man with light brown hair, who looked like he was in his early 20's. But the other... from what she could tell, it was a girl... but she had orange-ish skin, and instead of hair... what looked more like horns rested against the top of her head.

The young man seemed to notice she was awake. He stood up and walked over to the bed. "Are you alright?"

The girl put a hand to her head. "I... don't know..." she said slowly, looking around. The room was definitely not like anything she'd seen before. She looked down at her right arm and frowned. Why was her glove missing...?

"Do you remember anything before you blacked out?" he asked.

The girl started to shake her head before she stopped and looked up at him again. "Who are you...?" she asked, a note of caution in her voice.

"I'm Anakin Skywalker, Jedi of the Galactic Republic," said the young man. "Who are you?"

The girl looked confused. "Jedi...?" She shook her head again, as if trying to clear her thoughts. She still was unsure if she could trust this man.

"We found you on the landing platform outside," said the girl with orange skin, coming over to the bed as well.

"Landing platform?" Now she was REALLY confused. "Where am I?"

"Coruscant," Anakin, he had said his name was, said.

The girl was silent for a few moments. Finally, she said, "I... am sorry... but until I know where your allegiances lie, I must keep such information to myself."

"You're not from around here, are you?" the orange-skinned girl asked.

The girl shook her head. "I never knew such a place like this even existed," she answered truthfully.

Anakin and the other girl looked at each other. "What... exactly do you mean by that?"

The girl pressed her lips together. "I'm sorry, but I feel that information could be used against me if it fell into the wrong hands, and I still don't know who you are..."

"We're Jedi, peace keepers of the Galactic Republic," said the orange-skinned girl. "My name's Ahsoka Tano."

The girl looked down at her hands for a minute, flexing the fingers of her left hand. "I..." She paused. _Peace keepers..._ She supposed it was alright to at least share her name. But she would wait to tell them anything else until she knew their whole story and could decide for herself whether they were her allies or enemies. "I am Amara," she said finally.

"Nice to meet you, Amara," Ahsoka said pleasantly.

Anakin looked at Amara's right arm. "The Healers fixed your arm, so, I suppose that means you're free to go..." He trailed off, a hint of confusion in his voice. _You're free to go back to where you came from... Which is where, exactly?_

Amara looked down at her right arm before closing her eyes. Her fingers trailed along the bedding beside her, as if she were looking for something. Suddenly her eyes flew open and she sat up quickly. She stared down at her side before looking back up at Anakin and Ahsoka. "Where's my sword?"

"Relax," Ahsoka said, noticing her anxiousness. "It's right here." She gestured to the sword which was set atop a counter on the other side of the room.

Amara looked at her weapon before sighing and leaning back down again. This place... was so strange. Where was she? What had happened? Where were the people she had been with before she had blacked out? A thousand questions buzzed inside her head. She ran a hand through her hair, trying to control them all.

Suddenly she kicked her legs over the side of the bed and stood up, unaware of how unsteady she was from going such a long time without using her legs. She nearly lost her balance and put a hand against the wall to support herself.

Anakin was quick to react and ready to catch her if she fell. "Maybe it'd be wise to stay a little longer to build up your strength."

"Mmh..." she murmured. She looked back up at where her sword lay. "Could you get my sword for me, please?" she asked.

Ahsoka nodded and carefully picked up the sword. "Wow, this is a lot heavier than a lightsaber," she remarked as she handed the weapon to Amara.

Amara took the sword gratefully. "_Arigatōgozaimashita_," she told Ahsoka, then caught herself as she realized what she had just said.

Ahsoka blinked. "... Huh?"

"Ah... um..." Amara stuttered, trying to figure out a way to cover up her blunder. "Th-thank you." She secured the sheath around her waist and looked at Ahsoka. "What's a lightsaber?" she asked suddenly.

Ahsoka reached for one of the silver weapons clipped to her belt. She unclipped it and was about to ignite it, but Anakin stopped her. "Snips..."

"It's ok, Master."

Anakin sighed. "Just... be careful..."

"When am I not?" Ahsoka grinned and pressed the little red button on the side of the weapon. A blade composed of bright green energy came up from the silver hilt, and a humming sound filled the air.

Amara gazed at the 'saber in awe. "Never... I've never seen anything like it before..." she breathed.

Ahsoka smiled. "It's pretty amazing, isn't it?"

"Indeed." Amara glanced over at the window, trying to make out what she could see outside. "This place..." She trailed off, then shook her head. "I don't know how I came to be here. It's all so strange."

"Is there anything we can do to help?" Anakin asked.

"Not that I know of, at the moment." She closed her eyes, as if concentrating on something. For a few moments she was still before she opened her eyes again. "As I thought..." she murmured to herself.

"What is it?" Ahsoka asked her. _Is she Force sensitive...?_ she wondered.

"Ah..." Amara glanced at the window again. "N-nothing..." She stepped towards it, gazing out at the view, her thoughts partially consuming her.

Anakin looked at her. _Hmm..._ He began to concentrate on the Force, entering Amara's mind and trying to search her thoughts. Suddenly he hit a wall of energy. Amara whirled around, staring at him. Their eyes locked for a minute. He felt a presence shoot back at his own mind.

Ahsoka felt waves of energy going back and forth between them in the Force. "What are you two doing?"

Anakin rid his mind of Amara's presence. "I'm not sure I should be the one to answer that," he said, glaring at Amara.

Amara glared silently back at him. "Why did you try to enter my mind?" she demanded.

"I was just trying to get more information!" Anakin exclaimed. "How did you block me like that? The only beings powerful enough to do that are the Jedi and the Sith."

Ahsoka inwardly gasped at his mention of the Sith. "Master, you're not thinking...?"

"I didn't say that, Snips."

Amara narrowed her eyes before sighing. "Look," she said, "I don't know anything of this place. But believe me when I say that I am not against you. If I was, I would have made it very clear a while ago." She looked at Anakin again. "How were you able to get to my mind like that...?"

"The Force," Anakin replied quite simply. "We Jedi are trained to harness the power of the Force and use it to aid us in many things... reading people's thoughts is one of them."

A strange look came across Amara's face. "You mean..." She touched her shoulder, as if doing so would help her better understand all this. "What else can this 'Force' do?" she asked warily.

"It helps us with our lightsaber duels," Ahsoka began counting off Force-enhanced abilities on her fingers, "it allows us to jump higher than normal, as well as cushion landings from high falls; it can be used to move things around," she lifted one of the chairs briefly before setting it down, "and it can even—" She stopped herself, wondering if it would be wise to let Amara know of the Jedi mind trick.

Amara looked as if she had just receiving horrifying news. She put a hand to her forehead. She murmured something under her breath and pounded her fist against the wall, a dull thud filling the air.

Ahsoka and Anakin exchanged glances.

Amara closed her eyes and bowed her head a little, a sigh escaping her. A look of defeat labeled her face.

"Is everything alright?" Ahsoka asked, looking concerned.

"It's not something you need to concern yourself with!" Amara cried out, sliding to her knees and covering her face in her hands.

Ahsoka didn't know if it would be awkward to try and comfort Amara. After all, she didn't even know what was really going on. But still, at least she may be able to help a little.

She sat down next to Amara and put her hand on her shoulder. "It's ok, Amara," she said gently. "We can help you, if you want us to."

Amara slowly got control of herself and shook her head. "No, I'm... I'm fine," she told Ahsoka. "It's not something that can really be helped... it's just... this Force that you talked about... it countered something that I've always believed... and it was just a little too much to take in..." She stood up. "I'm fine now."

"You must be here for a reason," said Anakin. "Last time I checked, people don't just appear out of nowhere and not know where they are."

Ahsoka rolled her eyes at Anakin's "joke." But he did have a point.

Amara looked down at her hands in thought. "But it doesn't make any sense..." she murmured. "Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Then suddenly everything went black and when I woke up..." She shook her head. "It doesn't make any sense," she repeated, more to herself than to Ahsoka and Anakin.

"Maybe we should talk to Master Yoda," Ahsoka suggested. "He's the wisest Jedi there is. If anyone would be able to help you figure this out, it's him."

Amara looked at each of them in turn. "... Thank you," she told them.

**Note from Liv: Just so you all know, Amara is an OC of mine. If you look her up on the internet trying to get a clue to what the crossover is, IT WON'T DO ANY GOOD. xD Next chapter, our heroes pay a visit to the Council, and another character is introduced. Hang tight!**

**Note from Bluesaber3: Yah! :D Stay tuned, yah! :D**


	2. A Galaxy Far, Far Away

**Chapter 2! Yay! :D**

**Oh and I realized that I forgot the disclaimer at the beginning of the first chapter! I'm not gonna bother doing it _every _chapter, but I'll do it here :)**

**DISCLAIMER: Neither of us own Star Wars! Neither of us own the mystery crossover thing! And _I _don't own Amara, but Liv does ;)**

**A moment to address questions/comments in reviews. First of all, we would like to inform you that we will be politely ignoring all guesses as to what the crossover is. So you may be wrong, you may be right, you'll never know ;) Also, if you _do _guess, would you mind not posting it in a review? Ya don't wanna ruin it for all those who prefer to keep the surprise ;) Thanks! :D**

**TwilightFreakNumberOne asked: "How would Ahsoka not notice a random kid on a landing platform right away? Also, why would Anakin and Ahsoka so quickly accept that Amara knew nothing about the galaxy?" Answers: Amara was hidden from view, and only when Ahsoka actually looked was she able to notice her. And as for the other question, they didn't exactly "accept" it, they just didn't say anything :) (oh, and by the way, the "long confusing word" was Japanese ;) )**

**Inksaber asked: "Is this going to end up having humour in it? Or is it a serious story?" Answer(s): Oh, Inksaber. You think you know me so well. XD I'm kidding. No, this story will not end up being classified as "humor", it's quite the serious story :D (you never thought you'd hear me saying that, did you? XD)**

**Ahsoka-Tano-Padawan, you got it right, the word was Japanese as I mentioned above ;)**

**Cut Productions asked: "Did you know...(or care?) That in ancient Rome, it was considered a sign of leadership to be born with a crooked nose? (OF COURSE you didn't! Cause WE JUST TOLD YOU!)" Answer: ...No, I didn't know that. Thanks for telling me. XDDDDDDD**

**And about the chapter posting time, it will generally be around four or five days. We were _going _to go with five days, but Liv couldn't wait. LOL jk xD**

**Anyway, enough of me going on and on about nothing! (XDDDD) (yeah, you don't get it, I know. Liv gets it. I know she does. HI LIV! ok never mind.)**

_**Emblem Star**_

_**Chapter 2: A Galaxy Far, Far Away**_

Yoda's eyes narrowed slightly as he listened to Anakin tell his story. The information was intriguing; an incident that had never happened before. As Anakin finished talking, Yoda turned to Amara. "Know where you are, you do not?" he asked, just to make it clear.

Amara shook her head. "The land where I'm from... is nothing like this," she said.

Anakin raised an eyebrow as he realized she had said "land," not "planet." _Does she even come from a planet?_

"What planet are you from?" asked Master Mace Windu, as if reading Anakin's thoughts.

Amara looked confused. "... Planet?"

_That answers that question..._

"You are from a planet, are you not?" Obi-Wan Kenobi asked her.

"I'm... not sure..." Amara said slowly. "I am from the kingdom _Arteyah_, but..." She paused. "I don't know exactly... what a planet... is?" Her tone rose at the end, making her sentence sound more like a question than a statement.

The Council members exchanged glances with each other. How were they to try and explain that to someone?

"Masters," said Ahsoka, speaking for the first time since they had entered the Council room, "I believe I have an idea."

Master Windu looked at the Padawan. "Yes, Padawan Tano?"

"The star charts," she said. "We could use those."

Master Windu looked at Yoda. When Yoda nodded, Master Windu looked back to the three standing in the middle of the room. "Very well, show her the star charts."

Amara's lips moved slightly. _Star charts..._ she mouthed, as if saying the words to herself would help her better understand.

Anakin and Ahsoka bowed respectfully before leaving the Council room with Amara.

"The library is this way," said Ahsoka, going down a certain hallway. Within the next few minutes, they reached the large room that was the library. Many shelves of glowing holo-books filled the room, as well as data screens in the middle.

Ahsoka took a little sphere off the shelf. "Alright, this is it. Now we just need to go to a dark room. My quarters should work," she said.

…

Setting up a little stand in the middle of the room, Ahsoka gestured for Anakin to close the shades on the window. When he did, the room became completely dark. Ahsoka turned on the little sphere, and suddenly the whole room became like the night sky.

Stars were everywhere, and amongst them, where other spheres. Colored ones.

"Those," said Ahsoka, pointed to the numerous colored spheres dotting the chart, "are planets."

"Ah!" Amara looked up at the charts. "Now I understand... these are like constellation maps." She clicked her tongue thoughtfully. "Yes, we have maps like this back where I'm from, although they are slightly different." She studied them closely for a moment. "I have not seen them too many times before... but I know for a fact..." She looked at Ahsoka. "There are no planets or constellations such as these in our skies. They are entirely different."

"So that means..." Ahsoka started, but seemed unable to finish.

"You're not from our galaxy," Anakin finished.

Amara looked over at Anakin. "I suppose..." she said. "It would make sense why this place is so different from my land, but... what I still don't understand... is how I got here in the first place. Or why, for that matter."

Ahsoka nodded. "It is strange."

"We'll figure it out somehow," said Anakin.

"Mmh," Amara murmured. "It's not like I was..." She stopped herself.

Anakin looked at her almost suspiciously. He shook his head slightly and began to look at the holographic planets filling the room. His gaze fell onto the little model of Naboo, and he inwardly sighed.

Not understanding Anakin's strange expressions, Ahsoka turned to Amara. "I suppose you'll have to stay with us until we figure out how to get you back to where you came from. You can stay with me here, in my quarters," she said.

Amara bowed her head. "Thank you," she told Ahsoka.

…

A boy, probably around 18 or 19 years old or so from his appearance, and at the moment unconscious, was held suspended in the air by a containment field.

The door to the cell opened with an almost menacing-sounding hiss. A cloaked figure entered the cell and looked over his prize. "With this boy on our side, the Jedi will be helpless against us," said his deep, dark voice. "We must be ready when he wakes up."

"Roger, roger," said the droids in unison.

The boy stirred slightly in his sleep as he heard the voices. His eyes opened slowly and he groaned, only to find himself unable to move. He blinked, trying to clear his vision and make out what was happening.

He saw the figure standing before him, as well as the two droids. With the droids being droids, and the figure with a cloak over his head, everyone seemed expressionless.

"You are probably wondering why you are here," said the cloaked figure.

The boy leaned his head back, looking up at the ceiling. His breath came in short pants.

"We have brought you here to aid us," the figure said. "We strive to destroy the Jedi. And you have what we need to stop them."

The boy leaned his head forward again and stared at the man before him. "What...?" he asked hoarsely, his blue hair falling into his eyes.

"You have great power, more than maybe even you yourself know. With this on our side, the Jedi will have no chance of winning the war," the man replied. You could almost hear him smiling evilly, even though his face was covered.

The boy narrowed his eyes, then coughed. "Who are you?" he demanded, finding a little more strength to his voice. He was unable to make out who it was with their face being covered.

The man turned partly, half expecting the droids to blurt out the answer. "That information is not something for you to know."

The boy bared his teeth, spitting out a few choice words in another language.

Turning completely to face the door, the man spoke one more time. "We'll be back for you later." He then walked out the door, followed by the droids, and the door closed, leaving the room dark, cold, and quiet once again.

**Note from Blue: Excited for the next chapter yet? I am! :D**


	3. From Sword to 'Saber

**Hey guys! Liv here. I told Saber I'd do this part for chapter 3, so here it is! :P**  
><strong>DISCLAIMER: Neither of us own Star Wars or the mystery crossover. Amara belongs to me. :) If you use her without permission, bad stuff will happen. XP<strong>  
><strong>Not too many questions this week (thank you everyone who respected our wishes of not posting their guesses of what the crossover might be! Kudos cookie to those peeps :D)<strong>

**Q: "BTW How can Amara not know what a planet is! Every franchise takes place on a planet!" ~An Ahsoka Tano Fan**

**A: That may be true, but remember Amara said she hadn't seen constellation maps very many times. The life she lived when she was younger wasn't well educated, so things such as these, if they are known about in the series, she wouldn't remember without having to be reminded of what they are. **

**Q: "I LOVE this story? I cannot wait for you two to update? Please update soon? Amara seems so AWESOME! I am incredibly curious about the dude with blue hair?" ~Fallon Skywalker**

**A: LOL you creative girl, you. *Gives you Awesome Cookie***

**Q: "P.S, you will write some other stories right?" ~StarWarsRocksMySocks**

**A: Saber says it depends on the ideas she has, but if she does plan on writing anything else, it's a surprise. ;)**

**Q: "Who is the boy, and where is Amara from?" ~Inksaber**

**A: Ah-ah-ah! No spoilers! ;P**

**Q: "Who's the boy? He's the one who falls in love with someone right? Is it Amara? Is he an OC too, or a real fictional character? I know you probably won't answer any of these questions (except maybe the OC one) but I'm in suspense!" ~SnipsSkywalker**

**A: Haha yes, since the first three questions would count as spoilers, I won't answer those. As far as the OC one... the boy is a real fictional character.**

**Ok, enough of me keeping you in suspense by reading through this part! Onto the chapter!**

_**Emblem Star**_

_**Chapter 3: From Sword to 'Saber**_

The next day, Anakin stood at one end of an arena-like room; Amara stood at the other. Ahsoka stood off on the sidelines, watching.

Earlier, on their way to said room, Anakin had explained to Amara that if she was going to stay, she would need to learn how to defend herself. He was well aware that she could use a sword, but against blasters or—should she happen to come across one—a lightsaber, a sword would prove to be useless. So there they were, standing in the training room, preparing for Amara's first lesson in wielding that kind of weapon.

"These are training 'sabers, Amara," said Anakin, showing her a couple of the training lightsabers. "They won't cut through stuff like a real lightsaber can, but they will give a bit of a burn if touched to your skin, so be careful." He handed her one of them.

Amara took the weapon and weighed it in her hand, studying it for a moment before nodding.

"Turn it on," said Anakin. "Start to get the feel for it."

Amara pressed the button on the side of the lightsaber's hilt, and the green blade ignited. She watched in awe as she swung the 'saber around single-handedly in a quick, simple defense move. She smiled. "It'll take a little getting used to... it's so light," she said, remarking on its weight.

Anakin nodded. "Alright, let's try this." He ignited the blue training lightsaber he was holding. "I'm going to attack you with a couple simple offence moves. Try and block them."

Amara nodded. She unclipped her cape and tossed it to the side before moving into a fighting stance.

Gripping the blue blade, Anakin swung at Amara. Amara grabbed her lightsaber's hilt with both hands and brought it up to meet Anakin's mid-air. Anakin turned and quickly brought his lightsaber up again, this time aiming for her back. Amara whirled around, slower than she would have liked to be, and just barely was able to counter the attack. Using the Force to jump over Amara, Anakin landed behind her and was ready to strike again. Amara leapt back and countered him. She was starting to get the hang of it.

"Very good," said Anakin as he swung his lightsaber down to hit her legs.

Amara brought her blade down to meet his. She raised an eyebrow, a small smile playing at her lips. "I'm a quick learner," she said. Without warning she swung her lightsaber at Anakin's head.

Stumbling back, Anakin was just barely able to block the green blade coming at him.

Ahsoka suppressed a laugh from the sidelines. She was enjoying this duel.

Amara smiled to herself and began a series of advanced moves than one really only learns from very much experience with blades. She wanted to show him—and Ahsoka—just what she was capable of.

_Thought you were teaching a beginner, eh, Master?_ Anakin heard Ahsoka's voice through their bond in the Force.

_Snips! Cut it out, I'm trying to concentrate!_ He felt the heat of Amara's lightsaber as the blade nearly touched him. He jumped backwards, trying to create some sort of diversion to give him an advantage.

Amara whirled the blade towards Anakin's cheek, then at the last moment spun it around and brought it inches from his neck on the other side. She held it there for a few seconds, unable to suppress a smile. She knew she had won.

Anakin deactivated his lightsaber—either to show the training session was over, or to quietly end the duel without making it apparent that he had so obviously lost. "Good job. You'll do fine on the battlefield," he said.

Ahsoka walked over to Amara. "That was _amazing_, Amara! You're a natural with a lightsaber."

Amara deactivated her lightsaber as well. "Thank you," she said. She looked over at Anakin and smiled. "_Konkai wa boku no kachi da ne_." Still smiling, she closed her eyes and ran a hand through her hair.

Confused as to what the phrase Amara had said meant, Ahsoka tipped her head to the side a bit. "What does that mean?" she asked.

Amara opened her eyes again. "Ah, sorry," she said apologetically, still smiling. "I keep forgetting I'm not back home. It means, 'Looks like I won this time.' "

Ahsoka could feel Anakin's slight embarrassment through the Force. Given the fact that it was difficult for even herself to beat Anakin, it wasn't exactly surprising.

"We'll have to have a rematch sometime," Anakin said with a grin.

Amara grinned back. "Indeed. I haven't had this much fun in quite a long time."

"Maybe we should try a duel with real lightsabers," Ahsoka suggested, using the Force to pull her two weapons into her hands.

"Ahsoka, I'm not sure that's a good idea..." Anakin said to her.

"What, you don't think she can handle it?" Ahsoka asked.

"Of course not, it's just—"

"It'll be fine." Ahsoka grabbed one of the real lightsabers off the shelf and handed it to Amara. "You ready?"

Amara smiled. "You know I am."

"Good." Ahsoka ignited both her lightsabers. One was a bright emerald green, the other was slightly shorter—called a "shoto"—and had more of a yellowish tint. She twirled the lightsabers in one rapid swing before getting into a fighting stance.

Amara ignited her new lightsaber—green, like the last one—and held it in both hands.

Using the Force to give herself a burst of speed, Ahsoka thrust forward, slashing with both lightsabers.

Amara swung her lightsaber up and countered both of Ahsoka's simultaneously. "Just out of curiosity," she said, delivering an attack to her opponent. She shot out with her mind at Ahsoka's. _Have you ever had to fight someone with both mind and 'saber at the same time?_ she finished asking her through mind before Ahsoka could push her out.

Ahsoka mentally shook herself. _Not happening!_ She glared at Amara while blocking the green 'saber coming against her own. _Have you? _she asked back.

_More times than I'd like to say I have,_ Amara replied with a mental laugh.

_Well, like you, I'm a fast learner._ Ahsoka crossed her lightsabers into an "X" and pressed against Amara's 'saber, using it as a platform to jump over Amara while still holding the lightsabers against each other.

_Oh, it is SO on!_ Amara said gleefully. For many long minutes they exchanged attacks, both physically and mentally. Both of them were constantly trying to break through the other's mind barriers that led to their personal thoughts. They knew if they could break through their opponent's barricades, they could have an easy victory.

Ahsoka delivered a hard blow, which Amara deflected, but she stumbled back a little. _This is my chance!_ Ahsoka quickly entered Amara's thoughts while her guard was momentarily down, all whilst still fully engaged in the lightsaber battle. One image flooded Ahsoka's mind from Amara almost instantly. _Amara was locked in an embrace with a boy, 17 or 18 years old. Their arms were around each other lovingly. The boy stroked Amara's jaw gently in the pale moonlight and they shared a long, sweet kiss._

Amara's eyes widened as she felt Ahsoka obtain the image. "GET OUT OF THERE!" she yelled, frantically trying to push Ahsoka out of her mind. Finally she was able to get the other girl out of her thoughts and stared at her.

Ahsoka jumped and somersaulted backwards. Panting both from the intense battle and the shock of the image she had just seen, she just stood there, staring back at Amara.

Amara felt her cheeks heat up a little. Without a word she deactivated her lightsaber, grabbed her cape from the floor and hurriedly left the arena.

"A-Amara!" Ahsoka called, deactivating her lightsabers and starting to follow her, but Anakin grabbed her shoulder just before she could make it out of the room.

"Ahsoka, I think it might be best just to let her go. She'll come back when she's ready."

Sighing, Ahsoka nodded. "Yes, Master."

Amara walked hurriedly, wanting to get as far away from the arena as possible. She wasn't mad at Ahsoka. Just embarrassed, and partly hurt. Silently cursing herself, she slowed to a halt and looked out one of the windows next to her. She sighed, dipping her head. The memory Ahsoka had gotten a hold of continued to float around in her mind and she felt her eyes mist up a little.

…

Removing the cloak from his head, Count Dooku prepared to once again enter the cell. It was time to set his plan into action. "Droids!" he shouted.

A couple frightened battle droids ran up and saluted. "Yes, Sir?"

"Prepare the Magnaguards."

"Riiight, the Magnaguards," said one of the droids.

"NOW."

"Roger, roger!" The droids frantically pressed a couple buttons on the control panel.

A door opened, and two Magnaguards marched in.

"It's time," said Dooku.

The Magnaguards made no noticeable acknowledgement and began to march towards the cell.

The cell door hissed open once again, and Dooku walked in with his droids. _The Magnaguards may not be necessary..._ he thought to himself. He looked at the boy in the containment field.

"Tell me, what are you capable of with your power?" he asked.

The boy glared at him, his bangs partially covering his blue eyes. "What?" he growled.

"Your powers!" Dooku repeated.

"What powers?" the boy hissed back.

Dooku narrowed his eyes. "Magnaguards!"

The droids moved closer. One of them thrust the electrified stick into the boy's chest.

He yelled in pain, arching his back in a vain attempt to move away from the stick. After the Magnaguard stopped, he hung limp in his restraints, panting.

"Perhaps now you will be more... agreeable," said Dooku. "What are you able to do with your power?"

"I... don't know... what you're talking about!" the boy yelled. "What do you want from me?"

"You are to be the Separatist's new tool. With power as great as yours, the Jedi will stand no chance." An evil grin spread across Dooku's face.

"What power?" the boy cried, almost desperately. "I'm no more gifted than any other man!"

"That's what you think, maybe. But we know that you have the power to stop an entire army of Jedi..." His evil smile grew at the thought of it. Destroying an entire army of Jedi...

The boy bowed his head. He only knew of one person who had abilities like this man was explaining... and it was certainly not him.

Dooku glanced at the Magnaguards. The Magnaguards nodded and sent another powerful shock through the boy's body.

The boy was unable to suppress another yell at the fresh wave of pain that coursed through him.

"Stop," Dooku said suddenly. "We need him alive." He turned to the boy. "We'll give you some time to think it over. But you _will_ use your power to help us destroy the Jedi. Whether you want to or not."

The boy panted heavily and raised his head just enough to glare at his captor. "You... won't get... away... with this..." he growled.

Dooku grinned evilly, and proceeded to exit the room with his droids. The door closed, and the room was plunged into darkness once again.

**:O A cliffhanger? Yes, we're that mean. ;) This story is going to have more cliffies than we can count, so just a warning to you guys. (Just wait until chapter 6... you'll kill us at the end of that one for the cliffhanger it ends with. xD) Next chapter: Anakin proposes a surprising idea and we finally start to hint at some action happening in the near future. :D**

**Thanks to my friend Leah for helping me with the Japanese phrase used in this chapter!  
><strong>

**Also, for those of you who miss NSNW and are wondering what everyone's up to, Anakin is still over his unicorn obsession, but he has found a new obsession... Sandwiches. Most conversations between us go like this:**

**Anakin: Can I make a sandwich? 8D**

**Me: NO.**

**Anakin: Why? :(**

**Me: There's stuff to eat other than sandwiches, Ani! Besides, I don't want you destroying the kitchen. Again. -.-""""""**

**Anakin: :( ... But why?**

**Me: My house. My kitchen. My rules.**

***This repeats three or four times***

**Me: Dx Fine. But I'LL make it. *shoos him out of the kitchen***

**Anakin: *Doesn't like being kicked out of the kitchen but is happy he's gonna get a sandwich***

**... He's driving me crazy. Luckily Yakkaina keeps him pretty busy... Who's Yakkaina? Another OC of mine. They act like siblings, those two. *shakes head* I'll be glad once this week is over. Yeah, I know you have no clue what I'm talking about. Saber does. ;P**


	4. Two Padawans

**IT'S CHAPTER 4! YIPPEE! Yes, I had coffee this morning. Yes, the effect wore off already. *falls asleep on keyboard***

**... Ok I'm awake!**

**TARDISjedigirl said: "Sandwiches...he's on to sandwiches now? *hits head on desk.* Okay, whatever he wants. Just make sure he doesn't start using unicorn meat again. Bleck." Answer: LOL yes. XD And we're trying to keep him away from the unicorn meat.**

**"Biggest Star Wars Fan EVER" said: "OH MY GOSH THIS STORY IS SO AWESOME! IT'S LIKE DOUBLE AWESOME! WITH EPIC SPRINKLES AND AN EPIC CHERRY ON TOP! Is there anything better than double awesome with epic sprinkles and an epic cherry on top? Hmm... maybe awesome squared. Or which would be better, awesome squared or epic squared? Or maybe both. Or maybe awesome cubed. Or all three! I don't know. Anyway, KEEP WRITING!" Answer: Hmm… I don't know, LIV. *raises eyebrow* Yes, everyone, that review was Liv. Yes, Liv, I did just say that. Hah. XD When I said it would be cool to get more reviews, this isn't what I meant! (She had meant it as a joke. XD)**

**TwilightFreakNumberOne asked "How is he talking if he's unconscious? When did he wake up? And don't you think it's dangerous to practice with lethal real lightsabers?" Answer(s): You missed the part where he wakes up, right after the droid says "Roger, roger." Liv answers your last question, "Hmm... yes, but you have to remember that when training, most skilled swordsmen (or sabermen xD) practice with the same lethal weapons that they use in battle. And since Ahsoka and Amara both had enough skills wielding blades, it's understandable."**

**On to the story!**

_**Emblem Star**_

**_Chapter 4: Two Padawans_**

Amara closed her eyes, feeling the slight breeze that blew against her hair and clothing from where she stood on the landing platform. Ironically it was the exact same place Ahsoka and Anakin had found her.  
>She heard soft footsteps approaching. "Amara...?" It was Ahsoka's voice.<p>

Amara turned to face the other girl. "Hey..." she said quietly before turning back to the view. "Sorry I stormed off earlier."  
>"I'm sorry too," Ahsoka said to her. "I didn't mean to..." She trailed off.<p>

Amara knew what she meant. She sighed. "But still... I probably shouldn't have had it on my mind at that moment..."

Ahsoka stared out into the horizon. _Hadn't thought of it that way..._ "Learning to clear your mind is hard," she said. "To focus on the Force, your mind has to be completely empty."

Amara closed her eyes, exhaling deeply. "It's hard... especially when you're so concerned about someone else..."  
>"I know exactly how you feel," Ahsoka assured her. "That's probably why Jedi aren't allowed to form attachments." She sighed. "It's very difficult."<br>"The Jedi aren't allowed to form attachments?" Amara echoed, staring at Ahsoka. "I'm so sorry..." she whispered. "I mean, well..."  
>Ahsoka managed a smile. "It's alright." She sighed again. "It's just so... confusing. Jedi aren't allowed to form attachments... <em>but<em> we are supposed to be compassionate. A Master and Padawan are like father and child..." She paused and chuckled a bit. "And sometimes more like siblings."  
>Amara smiled. "You and Anakin have a strong relationship," she commented. "It's like when you two are around each other, you can almost feel the bond that exists there."<br>Ahsoka nodded. "He's the closest thing I have to family. Most younglings are brought to the Jedi Temple at a very young age." She looked down at the ground. "I don't even remember my parents."  
>Amara looked down as well. "My father died when I was five, and my mother died two years later..." she murmured. It was the most information she had revealed about herself since she had arrived. But she knew she could trust Ahsoka. And the Jedi. She knew in her heart they were her allies.<p>

Ahsoka smiled at Amara, knowing the other girl was beginning to share what she was really like underneath. She felt that the two of them would become great friends.

At that moment, Anakin walked up to them. "The Council is requesting us again," he said.

Ahsoka nodded. "Let's go."

…

"The star charts, recognize them, did you?" Yoda asked Amara after the three of them had returned to the Council room.

Amara shook her head. "The constellations are completely different from ours."

"It's possible that her planet is off the charts, in the far outer rim," Obi-Wan suggested.

"Yes," said Master Windu, "but even then, she would be able to see some of the same constellations."

"Is there anything at all that looks familiar to you?" asked Master Mundi.

Amara shook her head again. "Everything—planets, star alignments, everything—is different. Even flipped around at different angles, they are nothing alike."

"This certainly is strange," said Obi-Wan. "Have you any clue how you got here?" He knew that some of the questions they were asking her were quite similar, but maybe that was just because the Council seemed baffled by this situation. How could she have gotten here from another galaxy?

Amara didn't respond right away. "I do have one theory, but..." She looked up at the Council members. "If I share this information, it must be kept secret... for I fear if it fell into the wrong hands it could result in tragedy..."

Master Windu and Yoda exchanged glances. "Kept secret, your information will be. Trust us, you can," said Yoda.

Amara nodded. "Before I blacked out, back in my world, everything seemed perfectly normal. Nothing out of the ordinary. Which leads me to one conclusion..." She paused a moment. "The only explanation I can arrive at... is teleportation."

_Teleportation?_ Ahsoka and Anakin thought in unison. The Council members, on the other hand, looked deep in thought as they thought the information over.

"It is possible," Amara continued, "for a group of mages, or a single mage if they are powerful enough, to be able to use teleportation on themselves or others. But no one has ever been able to teleport something or someone such a far distance before... or so our records say..." She added the last part rather quickly.

As Ahsoka's eyes widened, the Council members exchanged another thoughtful glance. "Is it possible to contact anyone in your galaxy from this distance?" Master Windu asked.

Amara bit her lower lip thoughtfully, then shook her head.

"Masters, if I may," Anakin spoke up. He waited for Yoda to give him the approving nod before continuing. "Amara is quite skilled with a lightsaber. With your permission, I could train her, and she could be a great help on the battlefield."

"A Padawan, you already have, Skywalker," said Yoda, glancing at Ahsoka.

"I know, but I don't think it'd be too much work to train her, too," Anakin said.

Obi-Wan looked at Anakin and raised an eyebrow. _Anakin, don't bite off more than you can chew... again._

Yoda thought it over for a moment. He turned to Amara. "Think, what do you? Accept Skywalker's offer to train you, do you?"

Amara was thoughtful for a moment. "Perhaps..." she said. "But if there is any way for me to get back home, I must... I have duties I must fulfill. Many people are dependent on me."

"Yes, it would only be temporary," Anakin assured her. _Unless... we never find a way to get you back home..._ He shook the thought away. They_would_ do everything possible to help Amara get back to where she came from.

Yoda thought for a moment longer. "Train her, you can, Skywalker. But if find a way home, she can, her request to return, you must respect."

"Of course, masters," said Anakin.

Master Windu nodded. "You're all dismissed."

…

_ Later that day…_

"The Separatists have been rather quiet lately," Obi-Wan mused, scratching his beard thoughtfully. He looked to the other Council members.

"Indeed. It's quite strange," agreed Master Windu.

"What do you suppose we do?" Master Mundi asked.

"If we attack one of the planets under their control, they will certainly try to defend it," said Master Ti.

_Look at what this war is doing to us,_ Obi-Wan thought. _Jedi are supposed to be peace keepers. We shouldn't even be fighting this war in the first place…_

"Master Kenobi," said Yoda, "do, what do you think we should?"

"Why don't we call Anakin and his Padawan—_Padawans_—in. We can assign them to do some investigating," Obi-Wan said.

**Stay tuned for Chapter 5! :D**


	5. Memories not Forgotten

**'Ello, everyone! Liv here. (Actually, we're both here! 8DDD) (- Bluesaber wrote that, Liv is not crazy. Wait, who is talking? I LIKE THIRD PERSON SPEAK!) (- guess who.) It's that time again: New Chapter Time! :D**

**We're actually together sitting on Saber's couch in her home right now. I'm over at her house for a sleepover. Yay, first chapter we've gotten to publish while we're actually TOGETHER! :) It's also midnight where we are as we publish this! Awww yeah. BD (Midnight premiere! If you're actually up reading this as it's published, you get a GIANT COOKIE. :D)**

**(Bluesaber: I'M SO EXCITED 8DDDDD)**

**Do we really need to include the disclaimer that neither of us own Star Wars or the mystery crossover, and that I own Amara? … Oh wait, I guess I just did.**

**Anywho, time to address questions/comments!**

**"On the other hand, what Jedi would be allowed to have two Padawans? Is that allowed in the Order? And how are they already comfortable trusting Amara with potentially aiding the war effort?" ~TwilightFreakNumberOne. ****A: Sweet Force, girl, how do you manage to notice these things every chapter? You've got like this supernatural ability for editing, I swear you do. I actually thought about your first question myself recently, and honestly? I don't know. Someone go look it up and let me know when you find the answer. I have a Kudos Cookie for the person who looks it up first and tells me the answer! Anyway, if it is, she's not like a 100% Padawan like Ahsoka is. If that makes sense. So the Council would be more apt to allowing it. ****As to your other question, I guess we can just say during the time between chapter 2 and 3 she proved to them she was trustworthy. I don't know. Can we go with that? Let's go with that. ****And now I have a question for YOU… if I even write a book will you be my editor? xD**

**"I hate you. I really do. This chapter was going magnificently, it was gorgeous, beautiful writing, some of your best...and then I scroll to the end of the page and that's all that there is. WRITE MORE! May I remind you that I have a Time Machine and at any moment I could go to the future and read the rest of your story? KEEP THAT IN MIND. DO NOT DEPRIVE ME OF WONDERFUL WRITING. I AM NOT AFRAID TO RIP A WHOLE IN THE UNIVERSE TO READ THE END OF THIS STORY! ****In other news, please tell Ahsoka that, while scrolling through some old emails, I found one from her that I had not yet responded to. I sent her inquiry to the Doctor, and he replied that, if there ever was a planet made of peanut butter in this galaxy, it no longer exists. However, I am searching the Torchwood files to gather information contradicting this. I will not give up hope that Planataes Peanut-Butterilia exists!" ~TARDISjedigirl. ****A: Our first hate mail! LOL jk. I told bluesaber3 through chat that we had a new review from you. **

**This is how it went down:**

**Bluesaber3: hi :D**

**Me: Go read our new review. xD**

**We got our first hate mail!**

**Bluesaber3: I'm scared... *goes to look***

***she reads it***

**Bluesaber3: XDDDDDDDDD**

**Me: XD**

**Hey, it's the cliffies and sudden ends to the chapters that help to keep the readers coming back. ;) And be our guest, go ahead and fast forward in time to see the ending! Tell us what you think of the final chapter. /:) And we will relay the information to Ahsoka, don't worry!**

**"The rest of it is great so far, but where's blue hair boy? I miss him!" ~SnipsSkywalker. ****A: Unfortunately, he won't be showing up again until chapter 8.**

**"I hope we get to see Amara in action!" ~Ahsoka-Tano-Padawan. ****A: Stay tuned for the next chapter! :)**

**And for all you people who are saying "OMG blue-haired boyxAmara is SO going to happen!", is it occurring to anyone they might already be in love with other people? Oh yes, I just blew your minds. Was that a mini spoiler? Or am I just teasing you? Or is it really a spoiler? You'll find out around chapter 10 or so. ;)**

_**Emblem Star**_

_**Chapter 5: Memories not Forgotten**_

Ahsoka, Anakin, and Amara stepped into the Council room once again. Master Windu looked at them. "We've noticed that the Separatists have been strangely silent lately," he said.

"Investigate, we want you to," said Yoda.

"Where do we look?" Anakin asked.

"Search your feelings, Anakin," said Obi-Wan. "The Force will guide you."

Anakin nodded. "We'll set out immediately."

Amara remained outwardly expressionless, but inside was thoughtful. _You __forgot __to __mention __that __the __Force __guides __you, __too..._ she said to Ahsoka through mind touch, inwardly raising an eyebrow.

_The __Force __can __do __a __lot __of __things,_ Ahsoka replied to her. _Even __Master __Skywalker __can't __do __every thing __the __Force __is __capable __of._

_Mmh..._ Amara withdrew and left the Council with Anakin and Ahsoka.

"We need to meditate in order to concentrate on the Force enough to show us where the Separatists are hiding," said Anakin.

Amara looked over at Anakin. "So, the Separatists," she said, "are the reason there's war in the first place?" Even though she had been there a few days, she still didn't know everything about their world.

Anakin nodded. "The Separatists are trying to gain control, and bring suffering to the entire galaxy. Their army of droids seems endless sometimes; hundreds upon hundreds of metal soldiers, programmed to kill and destroy."

Amara narrowed her eyes a little, looking straight ahead as they walked. "Causing suffering like that... I'd kill them all right now and end this whole thing..." She stopped as she realized what she had just said.

"Easier said than done, Padawan," Anakin told her.

Amara raised an eyebrow and smiled somewhat mischievously. "Well, you haven't grown up in the world that I have, _Sensei_," she replied.

"What is your world like?" Ahsoka asked. She was very curious to know.

"Well..." Amara was thoughtful for a moment. "There are different parts to it. There are parts that flourish with plant life, parts that are more just like rocky desert, open plains and forests… And there is nothing electronic like there is here." She smiled at one particular memory. "To get around, you have to know how to ride. But sometimes a saddle isn't an option, so it's good to know how to ride bareback."

Ahsoka looked confused. "Ride what? A speeder bike?"

Amara laughed. "No, silly, horses!"

"What's a horse?" Ahsoka asked.

Amara stared at Ahsoka, slack-jawed. "They don't have horses here?" she asked, astonished.

"No," Ahsoka replied simply. "Is it a type of ship?"

Amara became ever more dumbfounded. "No, it's an animal."

"Oh!" Ahsoka exclaimed.

"So, kind of like a bantha?" Anakin asked. "The sand people ride those on Tatooine."

"I don't know," Amara said truthfully. "We don't have banthas in my land."

"What does a horse look like?" Ahsoka asked curiously.

"They're big, beautiful creatures. They're strong and most breeds are incredibly fast. Here, let me show you." She linked her mind with theirs and let several images flood from her memory into their minds' eyes.

Ahsoka was amazed by the beautiful animals. "Wow," she breathed.

Amara smiled. "This one is mine," she said as she shared another image. The horse was a dark brown and its mane and tail were black. Its neck had a graceful curve to it and its face was dished. "Her name's Seven. She's a bay Arabian; one of the oldest, purest breeds of horse. I raised her from birth myself."

"She's very pretty," Ahsoka commented.

Amara smiled. "Thank you," she said. "One of the reasons I love horses is because they're so intelligent. Once you form a bond with one you hardly think of them as an animal anymore; they're more like a real person and a companion."

"Like an astromech droid!" Anakin exclaimed.

Ahsoka laughed. "You're way too attached to Artoo, Master."

Amara smiled. "They're herd creatures, too. They don't do well on their own without a companion." She looked away wistfully. "She's probably wondering what's happened to me."

Ahsoka looked at her. "Don't worry; we will continue to search for a way to get you back home."

Amara smiled a little. "Thanks..."

Soon afterward they arrived at Ahsoka's quarters and went inside. Anakin sat cross-legged on the ground. Ahsoka did so as well, as did Amara.

Ahsoka closed her eyes and began to focus on the Force. Anakin turned to Amara.

"This will be a good opportunity for you to strengthen your Force ability," he said. "Close your eyes, empty your mind, and soon you will be able to focus fully on the Force."

Amara took a deep breath and nodded. She closed her eyes, wondering how exactly she was going to access the Force. She followed Anakin's instructions and began to empty her mind. Eventually she felt what seemed like a flow of energy... like a river, but bigger and much vaster. She concentrated on it harder. And then suddenly she was thrown into it full-force. She mentally gasped, but continued to focus on the connection.

"I see... plants..." Ahsoka said, deeply connected to the Force.

"I see them, too," said Anakin. "Colorful ones..."

"I..." Amara focused harder. _AMARA!_ She heard a familiar male voice yell in her mind from a memory quite loudly. She jumped violently and opened her eyes, gasping. The Force had led her to a not-too-old memory... but why?

Ahsoka opened one eye and glanced at Amara. "What is it?"

Amara placed a hand against her chest, trying to calm her pounding heart. "I-it led me to a memory..." she said somewhat shakily, "of a... a friend."

Anakin looked at her in slight confusion. "Focus, Amara."

"I-I was!" she said. "I was actually in the flow of the Force... and it hit me with that memory..." She shuddered a little.

Anakin raised an eyebrow. "The Force can show you a lot of things... not all of them are related or in the correct order."

Amara shivered. _But... __I __felt __so __sure __of __it..._ she thought. She closed her eyes and tried to focus on the Force again.

"Master, I recognize these plants," said Ahsoka. "They look like the ones on Felucia."

Anakin nodded. "I see it, too. The Separatists must be on Felucia."

Amara didn't respond, but rather continued to focus until she was back in the flow of the Force. It once again brought a series of snapshot images from memories to her mind. _The __tattoo... __the __church... __and __the __same __voice __from __before, __only __quieter __and __gentler __this __time. __"Amara..."_

"Amara?" Anakin looked at her.

Amara shivered. "It keeps bringing me back... to the same..." She gasped suddenly and pushed backwards.

"Amara!" Ahsoka exclaimed. "Are you ok?"

Amara put her hands against her cheeks, finding them wet. She cursed herself in her native tongue.

"What happened?" Ahsoka asked.

Amara shivered. "It's the same memory," she said, trembling violently. "The Force keeps throwing it full-force at me."

"You're still new at this," Anakin said. "Don't expect everything to be perfectly clear."

Amara tried to nod but found herself unable to. She continued to tremble from what she had just experienced.

"It's been a long day." Anakin stood up and smoothed out his tunic. "Get some rest, girls. We'll leave for Felucia in the morning." He left Ahsoka's quarters and closed the door quietly behind him.

Amara murmured something to herself, and suddenly her trembling stopped. She stood up slowly and sighed. There were bags under her eyes that hadn't been there before and she looked exhausted.

Ahsoka moved over to her mat on the ground and lay down. _It __sure __has __been __a __long __day,_ she said to herself.

Amara sat down on her own mat before leaning back and rolling over onto her side. "Good night, Ahsoka..." she murmured.

"Good night, Amara," Ahsoka replied quietly, before quickly drifting off to sleep.

When Amara sensed her companion was asleep she allowed herself to rethink over what had happened to her with the Force. She shut her eyes tightly and a quiet sob escaped her, the shock of it still fresh. She let the tears flow freely, and eventually sleep's inviting embrace enclosed her and she drifted off.

**Bluesaber: Now can we go to bed? xD JK**

**Liv: Awwww, but I heard all the best TV shows come on at 1 in the morning! :D**

**Bluesaber: Ever heard of DVR?**

**Liv: ... We have TWC. **

**Bluesaber: That has DVR... oh whatever XDDDD Night everyone! Or should I say morning? XD**

**THE END. not! XDDD HAHAHAHAHA You can tell the difference in our writing, can't you? :D**

**Stay tuned for the biggest cliffy yet in chapter 6! (And please don't kill us for it. ^^;)**


	6. Feats Beyond a Jedi

**It's chapter 6! :DDDD This is Bluesaber! We would've posted a little sooner but there was an error so we couldn't! :P QUESTION TIME!**

**TwilightFreakNumberOne said "How did you get so many subscribers?" Answer: I honestly have no clue! XDD As for your comment on that last sentence, I cannot take credit for it, for that was Liv's wonderful work and not mine ;) :D**

**Ahsoka-Tano-Padawan said "shouldn't have Amara been tested for midi-chlorians BEFORE being allowed as a Padawan? Or did I just miss that part?" Answer: No, you didn't "just miss it", xD Well, they already knew she was Force sensitive... sooooo...**

**And that's it for questions this time... not too many reviews on that last chapter xD**

**Liv has a message for TARDISjedigirl (so you'd better be reading this, TARDISjedigirl LOL XDDD) "Is that so? Well please don't unleash Weeping Angels on us... if you do we won't be here to finish writing the story! (And don't tell the Doctor I said this, but I'd rather take the DeLorean for time travel _any_ day. xDD) Well then, Allons-Y! :D On to chapter 6. (Added note: 10th is the best in my opinion, and I've never really even watched Doctor Who)"**

**_Emblem Star_**

**_Chapter 6: Feats Beyond a Jedi_**

The next morning, Ahsoka and Amara were making their way to the hanger where everyone was preparing to leave for the mission. "You ready to see _our_ ride?" Ahsoka said with a grin as she led Amara to where everyone else was.

Anakin and some clone troopers were standing around an old G9 Rigger freighter, better known as _The Twilight_.

Amara whistled. "Now _that's_ what I call transportation!" she said with a laugh. "How come you guys get all the nifty stuff and back in my world we're stuck with dirt roads and torch-lit hallways?" she chided.

Ahsoka shrugged. "Maybe you can take some of these ideas back to your universe," she said with a grin.

"Hey, now there's an idea..." Amara mused, grinning back as Anakin made his way towards them.

"'Morning, girls! Ready for the mission?" he asked them.

"You bet," said Ahsoka.

"Of course," Amara added.

"Good." He waved over one of the clone troopers. "Amara, this is Captain Rex."

Captain Rex nodded at her. "Hi, kid." He silently thought in his mind, _Is this going to be Ahsoka all over again?_ Not that he didn't respect Ahsoka; she had matured at lot since that day she was assigned to Anakin.

Amara smiled and bowed her head respectfully for a quick moment before raising it again. "Pleasure to meet you, Rex."

_Well, she's polite._ "Likewise," he said

Amara's smile didn't fade as they made their way toward the ship. She had left her cape behind; it would most likely get in the way.

The four of them boarded the ship, as well as several other clones.

Anakin sat in the pilot's seat and within minutes they took off. Within a few minutes the ship was in space. "Artoo, are we clear for hyperspace?" he asked the little astromech droid.

Artoo replied in a few small whistles and beeps, and Anakin pulled the trigger and the ship rocketed into hyperspace.

…

"So... who exactly are you?" Rex asked Amara during the long, boring trip through hyperspace.

Amara glanced at Ahsoka. "That... is a bit of a long story," she started before recounting everything that had happened over the past few days.

"She's pretty good with a lightsaber, too," Ahsoka remarked with a grin as Amara came to the part of her story where Anakin had shown her how to fight with a lightsaber. "She beat Master Skywalker."

Rex held back a laugh. "Really?"

"Really."

Amara looked away a little, slightly blushing, but pleased.

"What's that about me?" they heard Anakin call from the pilot's seat.

Ahsoka could barely keep herself from laughing. "I was telling Rex how Amara beat you!"

"What? Well—I-I was going easy on her! She was a beginner!"

"Sure didn't seem like it," Amara said with a smirk. "Seemed more like once I turned up the heat of the fight you went all-out."

There was no reply from Anakin.

Ahsoka was laughing. "Oooh, he's speechless."

Even Rex was chuckling. "At least I won't have to worry about watching someone who doesn't know what they're doing on the battlefield."

Amara raised an eyebrow, still grinning. "Well, I've had my share of experience."

…

Within the next few hours, the _Twilight_ came out of hyperspace, and they slowly approached the beautiful planet Felucia.

Ahsoka looked out the front window of the ship. "It's beautiful, isn't it?" she said to Amara.

"Wow," Amara managed to breathe. "I've never seen anything like it before."

Ahsoka nodded in agreement. She had been to many different planets before, and often, with the buzz of the war, she never really had the time to stop and admire the truly wonderful landscape and wildlife of the planets themselves.

They soon entered the atmosphere, and a few minutes later Anakin brought the ship gently to the ground.

"Good job, Master," said Ahsoka. "We didn't crash for once."

"All those times were not my fault," Anakin reminded her.

Ahsoka shrugged. "Still..."

Amara smiled to herself.

Anakin pressed the button to lower the landing platform.

Ahsoka stepped out of the ship and gazed around at the beautiful Felucian landscape. She took a deep breath of the sweet-smelling air. _Too bad the Separatists have to ruin such beautiful planets like these..._

Amara stepped out after Ahsoka. "So, where do we start looking?" she asked, fingering the lightsaber at her side.

Anakin, Rex, and the other clones carried out the supplies. "Wherever the Force leads us," Anakin replied.

Amara looked around. Something felt strange about this place... She took a breath, feeling the Force nudge at the back of her mind.

Anakin turned to Blade and Shark, two clones that had accompanied Ahsoka and him on previous missions. "Blade, Shark, I want you two to stay behind and guard the _Twilight_, as well as the supplies. We'll need to set up camp later tonight, whether we find anything or not." He turned to Ahsoka, Amara, Rex, and the other few clones. "Let's go."

…

After a few hours of searching, Amara began to get a strange feeling. She looked around. Nothing seemed wrong, but the feeling wouldn't go away. _Something's not right here..._ she thought.

Ahsoka seemed to notice something out of the ordinary as well. She remained on very high alert. Suddenly she stopped walking, Rex nearly crashing into her.

"What is it, Ahsoka?" Anakin asked.

Ahsoka put a finger to her lips, signaling everyone to be quiet. Using her exceptional hearing, she listened for the sound she was so certain she had heard.

Amara stared ahead. The feeling began to grow, making her uneasy.

Ahsoka listened harder. What she heard sounded like marching... Her eyes grew wide as she placed the sound. "Droids," she whispered.

The descriptions Anakin had given her of the metal robots flooded back to Amara's mind. She placed a hand on her lightsaber's hilt.

Anakin held his hand up, signaling for them to wait. _Don't let them know we're here,_ he said to Ahsoka and Amara. _We'll catch them off guard._

_Then we might not want to be standing out in plain sight like we are right now..._ Amara suggested.

_ Hide behind the plants._ Anakin darted to the left and stood hidden behind one of the large flower-like plants native to Felucia. Ahsoka did the same, but on the right side of the path. Amara and Rex quietly hid as well. For a quick moment Amara closed her eyes, concentrating.

Rex signaled for the other clones to spread out within the area. _Those droid's won't know what hit them..._

The footsteps slowly grew louder and closer.

Anakin glanced at his two Padawans. _Wait for it..._

Amara's hand hovered less than an inch above the lightsaber hilt clipped to her belt, ready to grab it at a second's notice.

Ahsoka already had her lightsabers in-hand, tapping the edge of one with her fingers. _Here we go._

The droids marched into view, completely unaware of the surprise attack that awaited them.

Waiting for the droids to come close enough, Anakin drew his lightsaber. _It's time._ He jumped out from behind the tree, igniting his lightsaber as he did so. All the clones came out from their hiding spots and began to fire at the droids.

Ahsoka leapt into the air, igniting both her lightsabers and landing on a droid, slashing it cleanly in half.

Amara grabbed her lightsaber and ignited it. She ran out and brought it through a droid, quickly slashing another immediately after.

Ahsoka sliced through one battle droid after another. It seemed almost too easy...

That's when she spotted about twenty or so commando droids come into view. "Master! Amara! Commando droids!"

"Commando droids? Great," Anakin murmured. "Amara, keep alert. These droids are crafty."

_Don't worry, I've had plenty of run-ins with crafty enemies,_ Amara thought to herself grimly.

The commando droids approached quickly, their sharp knives glinting in the light. Ahsoka jumped into the air, kicking down one of them as she landed. She quickly drove her lightsaber into it before it could get back up.

A couple of the commando droids focused on Amara as their target. One of them tried to charge directly at her while the other approached from behind. Amara glanced between the two droids before leaping back, the three of them forming a triangle. She slashed out at the Commando on her right, and for a moment to two were in heated combat before Amara was able to leap behind it and stab through it before fighting the next one.

Anakin looked at the commando droids. A small group of them was coming at him all at once. Either they just seemed to focus on him as their preferred target... or... they were programmed to stop _him_ specifically. He bravely fought off the first three, turning them into scrap metal.

One of the commando droids distracted Anakin as it swung its blades around, forcing him to take his focus on the others behind him.

Just as Anakin managed to destroy one, another one tackled him to the ground from behind. Fiercely fighting back, Anakin threw the droid off his back.

Suddenly another droid slashed at his arm, cutting him deeply. But the injury only made him all the more determined to win.

Still fighting despite his now-injured arm, Anakin managed to defeat more than half of the droids attacking him.

Suddenly one of the droids managed to catch him off guard, and stabbed him in the back.

Crying out painfully, Anakin collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

"Master!" Ahsoka screamed. She ran over to him and frantically dragged him off the battlefield and into the mass of plants. It would hide him, at least for now.

Amara glanced at Anakin and Ahsoka before returning her attention to the fight. _This is not good... so very not good..._

Ahsoka checked for Anakin's pulse and was relieved to find that he was still alive. Moments later he awoke and tried to get up. "Master, stop! You're injured," she said, trying to stop him.

Anakin pushed himself up despite her cautions, wincing in pain. "I'm... fine..." he managed to say, and began to make his way back to the battlefield.

Ahsoka stopped him from going out to fight again. "You are not going back out there, Master! We can handle the droids ourselves."

Amara slashed skillfully at the droids in front of her. But they kept coming... If the battle continued like this it wouldn't last for long.

Rex shot down a droid just before it could slice its knife through his chest. He ran over to where Ahsoka was still trying to convince Anakin to stay put. "Sir, there's too many of 'em. We need to retreat!"

Anakin looked reluctant to agree. He sighed somewhat painfully and called out to the troops. "Fall back! We're retreating."

Ahsoka sighed in relief and began to help support her master away from the battlefield. She briefly looked back and noticed Amara wasn't following. "Amara!" She shouted. "We're retreating!"

Amara didn't move.

_Forgive me for disobeying direct orders..._ she told Anakin and Ahsoka.

_Amara! What are you—_ Anakin started to say before barriers formed around Amara's mind, blocking them out.

Amara deactivated her lightsaber and quickly replaced it on her belt. Her hands balled into fists at her sides as she watched the droids continue to come. She took a step forward, and shot her hands out. A large tongue of fire coiled out toward the droids from her fingertips, its heat so intense that the droids in the front melted into metallic puddles almost instantly. Silent words falling from her lips, Amara lifter her arm, hand cupped upward, and a large boulder not far away lifted into the air before zooming towards the droids. A quarter of the army was already destroyed.

Amara pressed her hands together in front of her chest, words flying from her lips, and suddenly, quickly, she spread her palms apart, as if there was a wall on each side of her and she was pressing against them to keep them from closing in on her. A loud _BOOM!_ filled the air, and the droids that had survived her other attacks were destroyed instantly. Smoke coiled in the air, and Amara stood, breathing hard.

Ahsoka stared at Amara, her jaw on the ground. Anakin's expression was not too different. Rex and the other clones had their helmets on, so they seemed completely expressionless, but they were just as astonished as the Jedi.

Suddenly Amara swayed, fell to her knees, then her stomach, unconscious.

**CLIFFHANGER! HAHAAAA well you knew it was coming :D Stay tuned! :D**


	7. Revelation

**Chapter 7! Yay! (Liv here, BTW.) So glad chapter 6 got more attention than chapter 5 did. (Poor chapter 5 *sniff* Hardly anyone reviewed it. LOL) This chapter is pretty mild compared to the last one action-wise. But a lot is explained. And it contains more stuff to shock you guys with! :D Oh how I wish I could see everyone's faces as they read this chapter. xD Oh well. Just tell us what your reaction is in a review or something.**

**Disclaimer: We don't own Star Wars, we don't own the mystery crossover, I own Amara, blah blah blah… yeah I get sick of disclaimers too.**

**Question time!**

**Count Mallet: "Does she recover right away, or does she have to recover for an extended time after using such power?" A: Read ahead. That'll be explained in this chapter.**

**Ahsoka-Tano-Padawan: "Was "Ahsoka checked for Anakin's pulse and was relieved to find that he was still alive." a nod to a NSNW and Ahsoka's pulse checking obsession?" A: Haha, perhaps. ;) What else?**

**SnipsSkywalker: "Oh, and you're not going to have Anakin die, are you? His injury isn't THAT serious...is it?" A: Again, this chapter will explain a lot and put most of your questions from chapter 6 to rest.**

**And to TARDISjedigirl (because I cannot leave well enough alone xD): Oh yeah? Well, I've got a fleet of R2D2s! Haha, just kidding. What I actually have is…. pause for effect… a vast quantity of _eldunarí_ which I will gather energy from to destroy your fleet of Daleks with the Ancient Language! Hahahaha! Oh, and dear Doctor, please do not lock me away in the Pandorica. _Vrangr könungr, eka celöbra ono un malabra ono un onr fricai né haina. Atra nosu waíse fricai. Tuatha, tuatha._ Do not turn this into a _ristvak'baen_! (I attack your knowledge of Doctor Who with my knowledge of Eragon! MUHAHAHAHAHAHA! *cough* Sorry. Inheritance Cycle fanatic over here. xD) Why do I expect the Doctor to understand what I just said? Because he is in book 3, _Brisingr_. There is a reference to him. (_Brisingr_ came out in 2008, so it was obviously a reference to 10th.) Check it out sometime. Chapter 13, _Shadows of the Past_. Pages 204 and 207 if it's a hardcover copy. Also, Christopher Paolini explains the reference in the acknowledgements at the end of the book. It's the paragraph near the end. Ok, I need to stop now. _Sé onr sverdar sitja hvass!_(Go show this to the Doctor, will ya?)**

**NOW, ONTO CHAPTER 7!**

_**Emblem Star**_

**_Chapter 7: Revelation_**

Amara stirred from her sleep, opening her eyes slowly. Night had fallen, and a small fire lit the camp that the storm troopers had set up. She groaned and tried to sit up.

Ahsoka noticed immediately that she was awake and came over to her. "Amara! Just take it easy," she said to her.

"You gave us quite a scare back there," Rex said.

Amara placed a hand against her head, slowly remembering what had happened.

Anakin, who had one bandage wrapped around his abdomen and another on his arm, looked at her more suspiciously than ever. "So, mind explaining what _that_ was back there?"

Amara managed to sit up. "_That_," she said, "was my way of taking care of my enemies." Her voice seemed strangely calm, but in reality it was because she was still exhausted.

"There is no Force ability that allows _anyone_ to do that," Anakin said, feeling anger rise in his voice. Sure, she had saved their lives, but could they even trust her?

"What makes you think it was the Force?" Amara said quietly, raising an eyebrow.

"If it wasn't the Force, then what _was_ it?" Anakin exclaimed.

"Master, calm down," Ahsoka said, becoming uneasy at Anakin's temper.

Amara looked at Anakin curiously. "So, they either don't have it in this world… or you just don't know about it," she said to herself. "Interesting…"

"What are you talking about?" Anakin asked. "That doesn't answer my question!"

Amara glanced at him. "Were you even listening when I told the Council my theory of how I got here?"

"Teleporting has nothing to do with what you did back there! Stop avoiding my question!" Anakin shouted.

"I wasn't referring to the teleporting part."

Anakin glared at her. "You're still avoiding my question. As your master, I need to know about these kinds of things! You can't just go off doing all this crazy stuff!"

Amara glared at him. "The _mage_ part, Anakin," she said, her voice hard.

Anakin looked utterly confused. "I don't even know what a mage is!"

Amara looked at him for a few moments, silent. She turned her head away, staring at the fire. "A mage is someone who is born with the power to control magic."

Ahsoka's eyes were wide as she realized what Amara was saying. "...You can control magic?" she whispered.

Rex remained completely speechless.

Anakin narrowed his eyes. "Well, maybe you should've told us about this 'magic' _before_ we nearly got killed!"

Amara whipped her head up again. "You really think it's that simple? If I shared personal information like that freely, do you really think I would still be alive?" she snapped at him. "_Think_, Anakin!"

"Keeping secrets from the Council _and_ your master is never a good idea!" Anakin shouted. _I should know..._

Amara narrowed her eyes. "Easy for you to say. _You're_ not an heir to the throne!" She caught herself as she realized what she had just said aloud.

"_What_?" Anakin exclaimed.

Amara's mouth hung open. _I did not just say that out loud... I did not just say that out loud... _she thought to herself. She looked away, grimacing a little.

"What... did you just say?" Anakin asked, his voice filled with shock.

Ahsoka stared at Amara, astonished. Rex was still speechless.

Amara closed her eyes and sighed. "I said that I'm the heir to the throne..." The tone of her voice made it sound as if the information was painful to repeat.

"So... you're... _royalty_?" Anakin exclaimed, his jaw hanging open.

Amara shut her eyes tighter. "Yes," she sighed.

"Whoa," Ahsoka breathed, finally finding her voice.

_First I fall in love with a queen, now I get a princess as my Padawan? Is royalty, like, attracted to me or something?_ "You're... a princess..." Anakin repeated, still seeming almost unable to process the information.

Amara dipped her head. "Not for long. I'll be queen in the not-far-off future."

"Why... did you never tell us?" Ahsoka asked her.

Amara sighed. "Because if the information fell into the wrong hands, it could be dangerous. That's why I didn't tell you. Even after I knew I could trust you, I still felt it would be better to keep it a secret. But… also… I never wanted to be a princess in the first place. I was hoping that I could live my life normally for a while during my time here."

_The Jedi life is normal?_ Ahsoka thought to herself. "We aren't exactly the most normal people in the galaxy either, Amara."

Amara raised her head enough to look at Ahsoka from the corner of her eye. "It's a lot less hectic than being a princess. I wanted to leave my royalty behind me, at least for a little while... but apparently my fate is unavoidable, even for only a few days."

A thought occurred to Anakin, and his eyes widened slightly. "Amara... did you... send _yourself_ here? To get away?"

Amara stared at him. "No," she said. "Even I don't have enough power as a mage to do that. Teleport, yes... but such a long distance? Impossible. Even teleporting a short distance is hard for me. It takes a great amount of energy."

Anakin nodded in silent acknowledgment.

"So you're a princess... _and_ a mage?" asked Rex, finally being able to speak.

Amara nodded. "I suppose I owe all of you an explanation, now that you know," she said.

Anakin, Ahsoka, and Rex listened eagerly as she began to tell her story.

Amara took a deep breath before starting. "I wasn't always aware of my royal inheritance," she told them. "A little over two years ago was when I first found out. Before, I lived a... life as a slave." Her voice seemed to choke on the last word. She was silent for a moment. "I was finally rescued, though, and through a list of events I'd rather not go into, I was told that I was the daughter of one of the kings that had passed away, years ago. At first I was unsure whether to choose my inheritance or deny it, but... I finally decided to accept." She rubbed her wrist. "I also found out about my ability to control magic, which was also an inheritance from my father. He had been one of the most powerful mages our land had ever known." She looked up at the sky. "Long before I knew any of this, though, just before he died he gave me his sword. And I have been learning swordsmanship ever since."

_That explains your sword and how you seemed to pick up on fighting with a lightsaber so quickly,_ Ahsoka thought.

"But anyway, ever since I learned of my abilities to control magic, I have been practicing and my skill has grown. At one point I even learned how to reach out to other people's minds and how to protect my own."

"That's how you were able to block Master Skywalker out when we first found you…" Ahsoka said thoughtfully. Everything from before that was unclear seemed to make sense now. _Her reactions, her skills, the way she spoke to others she was meeting for the first time…_

Amara nodded. "Yes. And when you told me about the Force, I thought that somehow a way had been found to control magic without actually being born with the ability." She let her shoulders sag a little. "But I was glad to be proven otherwise."

Anakin had heard up until the point when she mentioned that she had been a slave. After that, his mind was swept away to Tatooine, remembering his painful past. _Someday, when I'm a Jedi, I'll come back and free all the slaves..._ Then the past just seemed to play itself out again right there in his mind. He saw his mother... Qui-Gon... everyone he loved who he hadn't been quick enough to save…

"Master!" Ahsoka shouted.

Anakin snapped out of his flashback, his heart pounding. He looked from Ahsoka, to Amara, to Rex, and then to the ground.

"Are you ok?" Ahsoka asked.

"Yeah... just a... old memory..." Anakin replied almost shakily.

Amara looked at the ground as well. "I'm sorry if I reminded you of something painful," she said quietly.

Anakin didn't reply right away.

_He's always kept his past a secret..._ Ahsoka told Amara through mind touch. _Even I don't know everything about him._

Amara closed her eyes. _It's natural, _she replied gently. _Even I have parts of my life I'll probably never share._

Ahsoka sighed quietly.

Anakin was staring up at the sky. "We probably should get some rest. Now that we know the droids are here, we should start looking for their base in the morning."

Amara opened her eyes and looked at him. "There's no way you'll be able to fight tomorrow with those injuries..."

"I've survived worse," Anakin stated.

Amara was silent for a moment. "Let me heal them for you," she said suddenly.

"Wait—what?" Anakin exclaimed.

"Let me heal your wounds for you," she repeated.

"I'm fine," Anakin said.

Amara looked at him seriously. "Anakin, if you try to fight injured like that you might not end up just getting yourself killed, but everyone else. Do you really want to risk that?"

Anakin sighed, defeated. "Alright."

Amara stood up tiredly and went over to him. She kneeled down next to him and placed one hand on the cut on his arm, and the other on the wound on his back. Closing her eyes, she murmured a few unrecognizable words. Her fingertips glowed gently as she worked.

_ I don't think I'll ever be able to fully understand how that works..._ Ahsoka thought to herself as she watched Amara work in astonishment.

After a few minutes the glow slowly disappeared and Amara removed her hands from Anakin's skin. The flesh on both his arm and back were left unflawed.

"Thank you..." Anakin breathed, nearly speechless. He felt completely back to normal—not one bit of pain remained.

Amara nodded. "It was the least I could do," she said.

Anakin lay down where he had been sitting. "Let's all get some rest."

Ahsoka lay down as well. "'Night, everyone."

Amara went back to where she had been laying before. "Good night."

…

Amara clenched in her sleep, her dreams consuming her. _"Amara..." a familiar voice whispered. "Why did you leave me?" Everything around her was pitch-black. She couldn't see who it was speaking to her but she recognized the voice instantly. "It wasn't my fault!" she cried out desperately. "I didn't want to leave!"_

_ "You've betrayed me... and for what?"_

_ "I would never betray you," she whispered, tears crowding her eyes._

Anakin awoke from his uneasy sleep, feeling a quiver in the Force. He sat up, looking around. His gaze fell on his sleeping companions. Ahsoka seemed to be sleeping peacefully, as well as Rex, but Amara... he could feel something wasn't right. Reaching out in the Force, he touched her mind. _Amara,_ he said gently. He sent waves of comfort to her.

Amara shivered in her sleep. _"Please…" she whispered. That's when she heard another voice say her name. "Amara…"_

_ "Anakin?" she whispered, feeling the comfort he sent to her._

Anakin smiled a little and answered her. _Yes, it's me. Are you alright?_

Amara didn't respond right away. _I don't know,_ she told him honestly.

_I can use the Force to help you find good dreams and sleep better,_ he offered.

_I'd like that,_ she said gratefully.

Without replying again, Anakin reached out and covered Amara with the Force, like an imaginary blanket of comfort.

Amara closed her eyes, feeling wave after wave of comfort wash over her. _Thank you..._ she said quietly.

_Any time._ Anakin stayed awake and waited for Amara to fall back to sleep completely. Then he lay back down and fell asleep again himself.

**And they all lived happily ever after.**

**Haha, just kidding! Chapter 8 is coming up soon.**

**For y'all who are wondering what's happening with all the NSNW characters at our Pennsylvania house, Anakin has gotten over his sandwich obsession. He is actually normal now. I think it might have had something to do with that semi-normal potion I slipped into his drink the other night… heh heh. We tried a 100% normal potion once, but it made him forget everything that had happened ever since NSNW started. (We managed to get the antidote for it.)**

**Next chapter, the mystery crossover is revealed! :D Stay tuned!  
><strong>


	8. Surprise after Surprise

**Welcome to chapter 8! Bluesaber here! :D**

**Question time! :DDD**

**Ahsoka-Tano-Padawan said: "Will you be giving Amara and Anakin a, not romantic, but a close relationship?" Answer: Definitely not romantic, LOL, but other than that you'll have to wait and see. :)**

**Inksaber said: "Since Anakin was reluctant to take Ahsoka on as an apprentice, why would he take Amara willingly? Especially since he had only known her for a short time?" Answer: It's probably somehow related to Anakin wanting to help Amara get back to wherever she came from, and at the same time his view about having a Padawan has obviously changed since he met Ahsoka. :)**

**Inksaber also said: "BTW, WHY THE HECK ARE YOU MAKING THE NSNW CHARACTERS SEMI-NORMAL AGAIN? You're ruining my dreams of a NSNW 4. :(" Well, if I ever _did_ decide to write NSNW 4, I'd simply use wonderful imagination to say that there are three separate universes: The actual SW universe, the NSNW universe, and the universe where the characters "currently" are now (aka where they are normal again). So… not that I _will_ write NSNW 4… it's still entirely possible ;)**

**And that seems like about it for questions… so, onto the chapter! 8DDD**

_**Emblem Star**_

_**Chapter 8: Surprise after Surprise**_

Barely remembering where she was, Ahsoka rolled over from her side to her back, slowly waking up. With a stretch she opened her eyes and stared up at the sky. She turned her head and saw everyone else, sleeping peacefully. She stood up and stretched for a moment, before contemplating whether or not to wake the others up, or to let them wake up on their own. _Well, once Anakin's up, we're all up, so I'll let them sleep._

Amara stirred from her sleep, slowly opening her eyes. Her mind focused on what she was seeing. _Felucia..._ she remembered. Slowly she sat up, running a hand through her hair.

"'Morning, Amara," said Ahsoka, who had sat back down on her mat to wait for everyone else. "How did you sleep?"

"Really well," Amara said, remembering last night. It had, quite honestly, been the best night she had slept since she had arrived.

"Good, you'll need your strength if we're going to find the base today," said Anakin. Ahsoka hadn't known he was awake, but obviously he was ready for action already.

Amara looked over at him. _Thanks again for last night,_ she told him.

_You're welcome, my Padawan,_ he replied, inwardly smiling.

"Good morning to you, too, Master," Ahsoka said, chuckling slightly.

"What?" Anakin asked.

Ahsoka just playfully rolled her eyes.

Amara smiled and stood up, flexing her fingers. She felt rested; all the energy she had used yesterday was restored.

Ahsoka looked over at Rex. He was still asleep. "Rex."

Rex didn't move.

"_Rex_."

Still nothing.

"_REX_!"

Rex jumped up and grabbed out his blaster pistols, looking around frantically.

"'Morning, Rex!" Ahsoka exclaimed.

Rex put his guns away and sat back down on his mat. "Very funny, kid." He rolled his eyes. Normally it may have been seen as disrespectful from a clone, but he and Ahsoka were quite good friends.

Amara tugged at her fingerless gloves. Her gaze lingered on her left hand for a minute.

"You ready, Amara?" Anakin asked her.

Amara nodded. "So, the plan is we don't attack; just do some investigating?"

"The plan is we find their base. Then we might do some attacking," Anakin stated.

_Wow, he actually has a plan!_ Ahsoka said to herself.

Amara nodded again. "You sure we've got enough fighters to attack if we have to, though?" _Trust me, I know from experience about this kind of thing,_ she told him through mind touch.

_Right... I keep forgetting that you're probably used to this type of thing as a princess._ He altered his plan a bit. "We'll look for the base, and if we find it, we'll return here and call for reinforcements."

Amara nodded inwardly, answering his last thought to her. _More than I'd like to be._ She fingered her lightsaber.

"Let's set out, then." Anakin called for any other clones that hadn't been killed in the battle the day before.

…

The group had been walking all morning, into the early afternoon. So far they had found nothing, and finally decided to rest for a while.

"It's no wonder we never knew about this base before," said Ahsoka. "It's impossible to find!"

"Nothing's impossible, Snips," Anakin reminded her.

Ahsoka nodded. She knew it, but, why was it so hard?

Amara glanced around. Ever since she had learned to use the Force, her magic and the Force had seemed to meld together in a way. They both enhanced the other's abilities that she could use. And, at the moment, they were nagging her at the back of her mind, as if trying to bring something to attention. She reached out with her mind, seeing if she could find some sort of life like they were looking for. Her conscious stretched out for almost a mile... Then suddenly she hit it: she could sense the presences they were looking for. She nearly stumbled back, quickly withdrawing her mind before her presence was noticed. "Holy crap!" she gasped.

"What is it, Amara?" Anakin asked, becoming completely alert.

She stared off to her left. "I think I found them," she said. "But..." The place she was staring at where she'd felt them... was a mountain.

Ahsoka looked to where Amara was staring. It _was_ just a mountain... right? Suddenly she thought she saw something detach from it. It was flying. "What...?" she murmured. The flying object came closer... almost like it was aiming for them. "Vulture droid!" she cried.

Amara head whipped up. "What is that thing?"

"No time to explain," Anakin said, dashing out of the way as the droid swooped towards them, beginning to fire a series of bright red lasers. "Quick, it won't be able to follow us into the thicker parts of the forest."

Ahsoka followed him.

Amara ran after him as well. _Anakin, if I may...?_ she asked.

Anakin stopped, whirling around to face her. He nodded once without a word.

Amara skidded to a halt and whipped around to face the oncoming droid. She waited a few moments for a clear target, lifting a large bouldernot far away a few feet off the ground with magic. When the vulture droid was close enough, the boulder suddenly shot forward. The vulture droid was hit full-force before crashing to the ground, the weight of the boulder crushing it.

Anakin, Ahsoka, and the clones stopped running and waited for Amara to catch up with them before continuing.

"We know where they are now," said Ahsoka.

"They know we're here too," Anakin stated.

Amara was thoughtful. "Should we still go in after them?" she asked. "It's risky, if they're expecting us."

"Where else would we go?" Anakin said. "If we wait around, they'll just find us again."

"Mmh." Amara looked back at the mountain. "We'll have to be more careful than ever."

Anakin nodded. "When are we not?"

"You know what I mean."

…

The group arrived at the edge of the mountain. Anakin pressed his hands against the cliff of the mountain that sloped upwards sharply, trying to feel for an entrance. "There's nothing here..." he said. "Just rock. It seems to go like that for a while."

"Master!" Ahsoka's voice called, but when Anakin looked around, she was nowhere to be found.

"Ahsoka! Where are you?" Anakin called out.

"Up here!" They all looked up and saw Ahsoka on the side of the mountain, grappling hook in one hand, her other hand holding onto a rock. She jumped up and landed on a nearby platform of rock above their heads, about 20 feet up. "There's an opening up here."

Anakin grabbed out his grappling hook and was up on the same platform within a minute. "Good work, Ahsoka." He signaled for everyone else.

Amara lifted herself up to the opening with magic, landing on one knee at the cave entrance.

Ahsoka stared at her briefly. _Keep forgetting about that..._ she said to herself.

Anakin walked into the cave. The light diminished within the first thirty feet or so.

"Switch to night vision," Rex told the other clones, clicking a button on his helmet.

Amara lifted one of her hands. A spark of flame began to flicker above her fingers. She looked around. "I don't sense anyone near here..." she said.

"Neither do I," Anakin stated. "We'll have to go in deeper."

The group walked for several minutes. Soon, the cave began looking less natural. The walls went from jagged rock to textured durasteel._We're getting closer..._ Anakin thought. He didn't know if Ahsoka or Amara had heard him, but it didn't exactly matter. He knew they were all thinking that same thing.

Suddenly Amara's head snapped up. She cursed in a low voice. "Someone's coming!" she hissed.

Anakin searched quickly for an idea. He looked around. "Quick, we need to—"

"Press against the wall, all of you. And whatever you do, DON'T MOVE," Amara said, her voice low.

Anakin blinked. He wasn't sure what she was about to do... but he _did_ trust her. So he pressed against the wall.

Ahsoka, Rex, and the other clones did the same.

Amara stepped back, pressing herself beside them against the wall. Closing her eyes, she began to silently say the words of magic she needed.

The 'person' they had heard came into view, walking down the hallway.

Ahsoka stared as she saw a couple of droids walk down towards where they were. She glanced to her left and her right without moving her head, and was shocked to see that everyone was gone. _What...?_ Then she looked down at herself and noticed _she_ had seemed to disappear as well. _What in the galaxy?_

_Don't move,_ Amara warned her. _If you do you'll mess it up._ She waited a couple of minutes after the droids were gone to make sure the coast was clear. "Alright," she whispered, stepping away from the wall.

Anakin watched as he slowly became visible again. "Whoa..." he murmured in awe.

"Pray that I don't have to do that again," Amara said. "It's never easy."

Rex was almost too shocked. _What... just... happened...?_ He mentally shook himself. _Focus on the mission, Rex._

"This way," Anakin said to them, continuing down the hallway.

Amara followed him. The hallways seemed rather quiet... almost unnatural. _Why aren't there any other droids walking around?_ she thought.

_Maybe because you destroyed them all yesterday,_ Anakin said playfully.

Amara hadn't realized he could hear her. _Weren't you the one who said the armies seem endless?_ she chided.

_That was before I knew about your... abilities._ They arrived at a door. Anakin could sense someone inside. He knew this presence all too well._Dooku..._ There was someone else inside as well... but this presence was unfamiliar to him. He reached for the button to open the door.

The doors opened with a _whoosh!_ and they all stared at the sight before them.

Dooku had his back turned to them, but at the sound of the door, he turned around. "Ah, Jedi... we've been expecting you..." A boy with blue hair was restrained in a containment field behind Dooku. He didn't raise his head as the group arrived.

Ahsoka looked at the boy. He seemed familiar for some reason.

"Dooku," said Anakin. "I sensed your dirty hand in all of this."

"Ironic you should say that, Skywalker. As I recall, you _lost_ a hand to my blade..." Dooku replied with a smirk.

Ahsoka could sense Anakin's temper rising. _Master..._ she warned.

Anakin looked at her for a split second before turning back to Dooku. "You're nothing more than a coward, Count. You run away every time we try to fight you."

Dooku turned his back again. "This time, you do _not_ have the advantage."

Amara neither moved nor spoke. She seemed shocked into silence as she stared at the boy in the containment field.

_That's what you think..._ Anakin thought. "Care to try and prove that?" he asked. He turned to Amara. _Amara._ No response. _Amara._

Amara stared at the boy a moment longer. "Marth?" she suddenly cried out, addressing the prisoner.

The boy lifted his head as he heard her voice, astonishment labeling his face. "Amara!"

**(Liv here) EVIL CLIFFHANGER! HAHAHAHAHA! Heh, sorry guys. But hey, the crossover is finally revealed! HOORAY! Ok, seriously, how many of you have been secretly pining for Blue Boy to come back? xD Well, he's back now. It's Marth from Fire Emblem! :D Yes, the secret crossover is Fire Emblem! Who suspected it, honestly? I know, probably a lot of people were thinking, "Amara used magic with saying words! Like the Ancient Language! It's Eragon!"**

**Kudos Cookie goes to Cut Productions for guessing correctly, and anyone else who guessed that it was Fire Emblem! We'd love to hear what your guesses had been in a review! Tell us if you had guesses right all along, or had thought it was something completely different (then tell us what your guesses had been.) **

**And just as a warning, I have _some_ knowledge of Fire Emblem, but I'm not totally savvy in the FE series! If characters seem, well, out of character, you can blame me. But either way, I hope it's still enjoyable! :)**

** Next chapter is a short one, so we should have it up very soon. Stay tuned! **


	9. And the One That Got Away

**Hey guys! Liv here. Well, here's chapter 9. This is a pretty short chapter, but it's got some action.**

**After reading all your reviews, we can't BELIEVE no one knows what Fire Emblem is! xD Don't you people play Super Smash Bros Brawl? Didn't you read NSNW3 chapter 12? You have no excuse! *hands everyone Cookie of Shame***

**LOL, jk. But seriously. Anyway, question time!**

**TARDISjedigirl: "I've never read Fire Emblem, but maybe I should check it out?" A: Technically this isn't a question, but I thought I should clarify. Fire Emblem isn't a book, it's a video game series. :)**

**Dawn: "If one of the mystery crossovers is Eragon, will the use of the ancient language be the only reference? And at the beginning of chapter one, Amara has a cut on one of her arms. I don't know if you added that just to make it interesting, or if it has an epically proportioned significance that will alter the course of the story." A: First off, there's only one crossover, and that's Fire Emblem. Second, if we are/were going to use the Ancient Language, telling y'all would be a spoiler. ;) And third, no, the cut on the arm was nothing symbolic. It just happened during the teleportation for some reason we never figured out but thought it would be cool to add. Injuring characters is always fun! Just ask George Lucas. :P**

**Inksaber: "Is he as powerful as Amara?" A: More unrevealable spoiler material! *zips lips shut***

**Ahsoka-Tano-Padawan: "When Rex said, "Switch to night vision." Were you thinking of season two, when he runs into the pole?" A: Honestly? We don't remember. xD**

**And now for the boring disclaimer we can all skip over: We don't own Star Wars, we don't own Fire Emblem, I own Amara.**

**Ok, now onto the story!**

_**Emblem Star**_

_**Chapter 9: And the One That Got Away**_

"What?" Ahsoka, Anakin, and Dooku exclaimed in unison. Everyone erupted into questions at once.

"How do you know him?" Ahsoka asked Amara.

"How do you know her?" Dooku demanded to Marth.

"Is he from your universe, too?" Anakin asked Amara.

_What is going on?_ Rex thought to himself.

Despite the commotion, the two were still silent. The look Marth gave Amara was clear: _Get out of here! It's not safe!_

"Amara!" Anakin shouted, grabbing her shoulder and shaking her slightly.

"Destroy them all!" Dooku ordered Marth.

Marth glared at Dooku. "How many times do I have to tell you, I'm not the person you're looking for!" he erupted.

"Release him," Amara commanded Dooku, drawing her lightsaber.

Dooku ignored her. He signaled for a Magnaguard, and the droid behind the containment field drove the electrified stick into Marth's back.

Marth cried out in pain.

Amara's heart leapt into her throat. "_TIESHI_!" she yelled.

Anakin and Ahsoka ignited their lightsabers. "Release him!" Anakin repeated Amara's earlier command, pointing the tip of his lightsaber at Dooku.

Amara ignited her own lightsaber.

Dooku used the Force to call his lightsaber to his hand. The slightly curved hilt emitted the bright red blade as he ignited it. A group of droids came out of the shadows behind, and began shooting at the Jedi and the clones.

"I'll take care of Dooku. Ahsoka, get the droids. Amara, free your friend!" Anakin charged at Dooku, engaging in a fierce lightsaber duel with him.

Amara nodded and ran towards Marth.

Ahsoka stayed close to Amara, defending her from the oncoming blaster fire. "Quickly, Amara! I can't hold them off alone for too long."

Amara was about to destroy the containment field with magic when Marth stopped her. "Amara, whatever you do, don't use your _majikku_ here. It's not safe to," he told her, saying the word in their native tongue so if Dooku heard, he wouldn't understand.

Amara almost couldn't believe what he was saying. "I won't leave you here!" she told him.

Ahsoka swung one lightsaber in front of her to block the laser fire, and with the other stabbed a droid next to her. "Amara! Hurry!"

Amara glanced between Ahsoka and Marth, uncertainty in her eyes.

"Go," Marth told her. "Help your friend first."

Ahsoka kicked down a droid in front of her, slicing it into pieces. She whirled around just in time to block a droid from shooting her down from behind.

Amara's eyes were locked on Marth's for a moment longer before she went to help Ahsoka deal with the droids. She twirled her lightsaber around, slashing at one of the droids Ahsoka was fighting.

Ahsoka let out a quick sigh. "Thanks," she murmured before getting back to the fighting. The droids never seemed to stop coming.

"The trap is set, Skywalker! Your fight here is useless!" Dooku said to Anakin as their lightsabers locked once again.

Anakin glared at him. "It doesn't look that way to _me_—" He pushed forward quickly, trying to gain an advantage over Dooku.

Dooku knew that this phase of the plan hadn't gone the way he wanted. He kicked Anakin down and used his momentary advantage to call the two Magnaguards to grab Marth.

The droids deactivated the containment field and Marth fell to the ground, groaning. They each grabbed one of Marth's arms and began to drag him away.

Dooku Force-pushed them into his little solar sailer and jumped in after them. The little machine began to start up.

"NO!" Amara screamed. She slashed down the droid in front of her and ran towards the solar sailer.

The entire room began to shake violently. A large portion of the wall opened like a giant garage, and Dooku's solar sailer took off.

Anakin watched angrily. "He _won't_ get away with this!" he exclaimed. Glancing around, he noticed a speeder that happened to be in the room and jumped onto it, taking off top-speed after Dooku.

"Anakin will take care of Dooku," Ahsoka told Amara. "We need to finish off these droids!"

Amara watched helplessly for a moment as the sailer flew farther and farther away before returning her focus to the fight, bringing her lightsaber through another droid.

_Meanwhile…_

Anakin had the speeder on the highest speed setting it would go. He seemed to be gaining on Dooku.

Dooku glanced behind him, noticing Anakin chasing them in hot pursuit and pressed a button on the control panel.

_Meanwhile…_

As she fought, Amara noticed out of the corner of her eye some vulture droids start up. "Ahsoka!" she yelled.

Ahsoka whirled around to face the vulture droids. _Dooku probably called for backup..._ "Let's distract them! They'll most likely stop flying and try to destroy us." She ran over to them. "HEY! Laser beak! Down here!"

Amara ran over as well. _How am I supposed to take these things on without magic?_ she thought. She knew Marth had told her not to, but... they were starting to run out of options.

_You can't use magic... but you can use the Force,_ Ahsoka, who seemed to have heard her, said. She jumped into the air and landed on the vulture droid's head, stabbing her lightsabers into it. It collapsed to the ground.

_Right… right…_ Amara followed Ahsoka's example, leaping up onto one of the vulture droids and stabbing it with her lightsaber.

Rex and the other clones were still fighting bravely, trying to keep the number of droids down.

One of the vulture droids started shooting at Ahsoka. She dove out of the way, slicing the bottom off one of its legs. When it tried to shoot her again, she ran in the other direction and cut through another leg. Once she cut through the third leg, the droid fell over. Sparks flew from it as it deactivated.

Amara rushed over to another vulture droid and promptly destroyed it. As she did, she glanced up, noticing two of the vulture droids had managed to escape. She cursed to herself.

Ahsoka watched the two droids fly away and bit her lip. She knew Anakin could handle them. She just hoped he would sense them coming before it was too late.

_Meanwhile…_

_ Where is that backup?_ Dooku screamed in his mind as he swerved back and forth to avoid the blaster fire from Anakin's speeder behind him.

Anakin continuously fired at Dooku, but he always seemed to be able to avoid it. Suddenly there was a quiver in the Force. _Danger!_

Seconds after, he heard the familiar sound of blaster fire, and quickly looked behind him. Two vulture droids were gaining on him, shooting rapidly.

_...Two droids? That's all you could come up with, Dooku?_ He swerved around in a large loop, coming up behind the vulture droids and fired rapidly. One crashed to the ground in a deafening explosion.

The explosion made the speeder sway, and Anakin lost control for a moment. He slammed the controls with his fist, trying to get them to work again.

The vulture droid took advantage of the moment of chaos and made its move. It quickly fired at him, knocking out the engine.

The speeder plummeted to the ground. Anakin barely managed to jump out right before it hit the ground. He used the Force to cushion his landing and saw the speeder crash in a ball of fire not 10 feet away from him.

He looked up, watching as Dooku and the surviving vulture droid flew away.

**Poor Marth. :( Ok, I'm going to reveal a little spoiler/warning for the next chapter: It's sad. Terribly sad. And we also learn more about Amara and Marth. And a shocker involving the two of them. Now you're all in suspense, I know. xD Hang tight!**

**Oh, and Dawn? I hope you like the taste of shoe. /:)**


	10. We are Broken

**WELCOME TO CHAPTER 10! This is Bluey! :D Sorry we haven't gotten this up sooner! We have absolutely no excuse. XD But this chapter is longer, so… :D**

**TARDISjedigirl asked: "Are you doing NaNoWriMo?" Answer: No, I am not. I've never done it before, actually. I prefer just to write fan fiction for fun ;)**

**Ahsoka-Tano-Padawan asked: "What does TIESHI mean? I know it's probably something like 'STOP!' But figured I'd ask anyway." Answer: And you'd be correct, LOL.**

**And surprisingly, that's it. XDDD on to the story!**

_**Emblem Star**_

_**Chapter 10: We are Broken**_

Everyone stood around Amara in the _Twilight_. After the vulture droids had taken off, Amara, Ahsoka and the clones had managed to destroy the rest of the droids. They had eventually found Anakin and he told them what had happened.

"So," Ahsoka said to Amara, curiosity filling her voice, "how do you know that boy Dooku had captured?"

"He's a… very close friend of mine," Amara said. "We met each other years ago. What I don't get is why he's _here_."

Anakin looked deep in thought. "It is strange." He thought for a moment longer. "Dooku even tried to get him to kill us... Very strange."

Amara rubbed her wrist. "What if he got here the way I did?" she wondered aloud. "We were together when it happened. Often that can happen in teleporting, too. The people around the intended target can end up being teleported as well."

"Is it possible for the 'intended target' to get teleported to a _different_ place than the others that were teleported? Because that seems to be the case here," said Anakin.

Amara thought for a moment. "Yes... but the distance usually isn't too far... but on certain occasions it can end up being greater than it normally would."

"In a situation such as this," said Anakin, "I don't think _anything_ is within the ranges of normal."

Amara glanced out the window for a moment. "There was one other person with us when it happened," she added. "I wonder if she was teleported as well."

"I suppose," Anakin murmured, "we'll just have to find out."

Amara nodded, worry filling her. Suddenly her eyes widened. "I just realized something," she said.

"What?" Ahsoka asked.

She turned back to Anakin and Ahsoka. "When we were using the Force, trying to figure out which planet the Separatists were on, it kept bringing me back to the same memory of an old friend." She took a breath. "The memory was of Marth."

_So she really was concentrating,_ Anakin thought to himself, feeling a little guilty for telling her to focus when she had told them what the Force had led her to and he had thought she wasn't concentrating. The Force had been telling her that Marth was on Felucia. "It all makes sense now..." he said.

Amara nodded. "But, what do we do now? The Separatists are gone, and they've taken Marth with them."

"We return to Coruscant," said Anakin. "The Council needs to know of this information. They will tell us what to do next."

…

Amara stared out the window during the long journey back to Coruscant, lost in thought.

Ahsoka walked over to her, looking out the window as well. "So... that guy Dooku captured... Marth's his name, right? You know him?"

Amara nodded. "We've known each other for years."

Still staring out the window, Ahsoka pondered all the mysteries and secrets surrounding Amara, Marth, and the whole situation in general. "Why do you think Dooku wants him?"

"I honestly don't know," Amara told her. "There's no reason I can think of as to why they'd want him. It's strange..."

Ahsoka looked over at Amara. Suddenly the memory she had seen from Amara's mind during their practice fight flooded back to her and she realized something almost instantly. "Amara..." She paused for a moment. "Marth... is the guy from your memory, isn't he?"

Amara didn't respond right away. "I was wondering if you'd make the connection," she said quietly without looking at her.

Eyes widening slightly, Ahsoka continued to look at Amara. She half wondered why Amara hadn't told her up until now. But then again, as she realized, it was personal information, and Amara had every right not to tell them. "Wow..." was all Ahsoka managed to say.

Amara looked at her from the corner of her eye, expression unchanging. "You make it seem like it's such a big deal," she murmured.

"Sorry," Ahsoka mumbled. "I don't get to see a lot of... romance... as a Jedi."

"It's alright..." Amara said quietly, looking away.

_Are you ok?_ Ahsoka asked her, reaching out in the Force to touch her mind.

Amara sighed. _Yeah._ A memory almost slipped her thoughts, but she caught it before it reached Ahsoka's mind.

_Everything will turn out fine, trust me._ Ahsoka smiled a little. _There's always hope._

Amara only nodded. She closed her eyes, inwardly clutching the memory close.

…

The Council listened intently as Anakin told them of their mission. "… but Dooku got away, and he took Marth with him."

Everyone was silent for a moment. Yoda looked deep in thought.

"Well done, Skywalker," said Master Windu. "Now you must find out where Dooku has taken his prisoner. That is our only chance of freeing him."

Anakin nodded.

Amara absentmindedly touched her left hand.

"Anything else, discovered have you, Skywalker?" Yoda asked.

Anakin glanced at Amara. "Well..."

_It's alright, Anakin._ "They did," Amara told the Council. She explained her royalty and powers of magic to them.

If the Council hadn't been trying to maintain their nearly expressionless faces and appear wise and dignified, their jaws might have been on the ground. "Interesting news, this is," said Yoda.

"Yes," Master Windu said, "with this information, we may be able to continue to search for a way to get you back home."

"A way to get _both_ of them back home," Ahsoka spoke up. "Even if we can find a way to get Amara back home, I know she won't leave without Marth."

The Council looked at each other briefly. "Set out tomorrow," said Obi-Wan. "Try and see if you can track where Dooku has gone."

Anakin nodded.

"You're dismissed," Master Windu said.

The three of them bowed and left the Council.

…

Dooku had chained Marth's hands together, and now was having him stand in the middle of a strange-looking platform. "This will give your Jedi friends a little something... unexpected," Dooku said with an evil smirk. "Say, something to stew on?" He pressed a couple buttons on a control panel and the platform began to lower into the ground.

Marth glared at him. "What are you doing?" he growled.

Dooku didn't answer. The platform went completely into the ground, and a cold gas began to surround Marth.

Marth managed to gasp before he froze... literally. Within seconds he was frozen in carbonite.

The carbonite slab rose back up on the platform, and Dooku looked at it, the evil smile on his face growing. _And this time... things will go according to plan..._

…

"It's just so worrying for me," Amara was saying to Anakin and Ahsoka. They were in Ahsoka's quarters, talking over what had happened the past few days. The conversation had, of course, eventually gone to Marth. "I mean I care so much about him..." Amara looked up and saw that both Anakin and Ahsoka's expressions had suddenly changed. "... What's wrong?"

Ahsoka seemed unable to speak. Anakin looked at Amara solemnly. "When someone dies, their presence in the Force disappears. We just felt someone's presence disappear," he told her.

Amara looked at him. "Whose?"

"Reach out in the Force, Amara."

Amara looked confused. She reached out as Anakin said, and a strange look came over her face. Something was wrong... Then she realized whose presence it was that was missing from the Force.

Marth's.

Her eyes widened in horror. "No..." she whispered. "No... No, no, NO!"

Ahsoka had lowered her head in silent sadness.

"I'm... so sorry, Amara..." Anakin said. Inside he felt a flicker of something... was it guilt? He knew all too well how it felt to lose someone close to him. He _had_ done his best to save Marth... and failed. _Why does it always happen like this?_

Tears were already spilling down Amara's cheeks. "No... No... God, please, no!" She fell to her knees.

Anakin sighed inwardly, feeling as if it was his fault Marth was dead. _I failed. Again._

Ahsoka remained completely silent. _There must have been more we could've done... why didn't we do it?_

Amara buried her face in her hands, unable to control her sobbing. He couldn't be dead. He couldn't... she was nothing without him...

…

Amara watched as tear after tear dripped onto her palm. She sat alone in the gardens. _Alone..._ she thought. The word brought a fresh wave of tears to her eyes. She swallowed hard, trying to control them.

Nearby, Anakin stood, watching her. He clenched his fist closed as memories flooded back to him again. _How can I help her if I can't even forgive myself?_ Finally, he walked towards her, his footsteps soft in the grass. He didn't say a word at first, reaching down to touch her shoulder.

Amara didn't move, but instead answered though mind touch. _Why? Why did he have to die...?_ She sobbed again.

_I... I don't know, Amara. I've been in your situation before... and I've always asked myself the same question..._ He fought back tears from coming to his own eyes. There was no way he'd let himself cry.

Amara buried her face in her hands. _First my parents... and now him... I feel like I'm going to die!_

_ Believe me... I know exactly how you feel._ Anakin sat down next to her.

_ He... was so much more than a friend..._ she whispered. A fresh wave of tears coursed down her face.

Anakin wondered what she meant. She could have meant it figuratively, as in he was very important to her... or... he really was much more..._I'll try and help any way I can,_ he said.

Amara didn't answer. She couldn't.

She wrapped her arms around her knees and rested her face against them, sobbing even harder than before. She felt broken. _No... I AM broken,_ she thought.

Anakin put an arm around her and tried his best to give her as much comfort in the Force as he was able to.

Amara pressed her head against his chest, her sobbing uncontrolled.

Keeping her in his tight embrace, Anakin nearly wore himself out sending comfort through the Force, but he didn't care.

_ I loved him... so deeply..._ Amara whispered. She kept her eyes closed, trying to focus on her breathing.

_Love..._ That word meant a lot to Anakin. His mind flickered with an image of Padme and he blinked. "I understand, Amara. I have someone I deeply love, too..." He trailed off.

Amara took a deep breath. "But Anakin, you don't understand..."

Anakin closed his eyes for a moment, thinking to himself. _You can trust her, Anakin..._ "You must not tell _anyone_ of what I am about to tell you," he said to her, keeping his voice low. "If anyone were to find out..." He stopped. He couldn't bear to think what would happen.

Amara glanced at him. "I swear."

"I'm... married," Anakin said. "I don't know what I would do if anything happened to my wife..."

Amara looked at him for a long minute in silence. Finally, she said, "I won't tell anyone, but... you have to promise not to tell _my_ secret... it's mine to share when the time comes."

"I won't say a word," Anakin promised.

Amara nodded. She took hold of her fingerless glove on her left hand and slowly pulled it off. There, on her finger, was a silver ring. She held up her hand.

Anakin's eyes widened. _It's... him, isn't it...?_

Amara closed her eyes and nodded. _Next spring would've made two years._

_ I'm so sorry..._

Amara looked up at him. _He was my life..._ she murmured. _He was part of the reason I accepted the throne in the first place, so we could be together._

Anakin looked into her eyes. He felt as if they belonged to someone much, much older than a 17-year-old.

Amara's eyes filled with tears again and she balled her hand that wore her ring into a fist.

_As Jedi... we have to let go of our grief, and move on..._ Anakin said to her. _It isn't always easy... _To himself he added, _I can barely do it myself..._

Amara rested her head against his shoulder. _Tell me that tomorrow... or next week... just not tonight._

Anakin nodded. She was right. Even Jedi were given time. _Everything will be alright, Amara,_ he said. _There's always hope._

Amara closed her eyes and sighed shakily. _I'm so sorry, Marth..._ she thought to herself. _I'm so sorry._

**Hey everybody, Liv here. I just wanted to explain a few things. No, Marth is not actually dead, despite what everyone thinks. Dooku only froze him in carbonite. He's perfectly alive.**

**Also, for those of you who have more knowledge about FE, in this story, we... well, I... basically got rid of Marth's love interest in the game series, Shiida. The reason is that I had made Amara long before I knew about Shiida, and in roleplays and such, she would always be Marth's OC. So, Shiida does not exist here. Bye bye, Shiida... heh, I told you the FE part of the story may not be entirely accurate. :P**


	11. Third Victim

**Hey guys! Liv here. Oh my gosh, we are SO sorry for not updating until now! We've been…. doing other stuff…. Ok I admit it, we were lazy about updating. x.x**

**Aaaaaaaaanyway, question time. Only one today.**

**Yendor Tyfo and Pinksaber13: "Wait, is Amara married? Isn't she a little young?" A: Yep, she's married to Marth. As for your second question, some people might say so, but back in 'em old days princes and princesses (and people in general) got married pretty young. (Gotta keep in mind the time era their world is set in.) In fact, in one of the Fire Emblem video games if you play a certain way, Marth gets married at 16. Crazy, eh?**

**You know how the disclaimer goes; we don't own SW or FE, I own Amara.**

**_Emblem Star_  
><strong>

**_Chapter 11: Third Victim_**

The next morning, Ahsoka, Anakin, and Amara arrived at the hanger. Rex was waiting with some news. "We've tracked Dooku's sailer, General. He seems to be on Naboo."

Anakin felt his heart skip a beat. _Naboo?_ Padme was on Naboo right now...

"Master?" Ahsoka looked at him.

"Very good, Rex. Let's go." Anakin boarded the _Twilight_.

Ahsoka raised an eyebrow a little, and followed him onto the ship.

Amara walked up the ramp, her face expressionless. Less than an hour ago they had met with the Council one more time to tell them the news about Marth. She had hardly been able to hold it together.

Rex and the other clones boarded as well.

Anakin started up the engine and the _Twilight_ flew out into space. Within the next several minutes, they were in hyperspace.

_Several hours later..._

"Here we are, beautiful Naboo," said Anakin as he landed the _Twilight_ at a landing platform near Theed Palace.

Amara looked out the window. "This almost reminds me of parts of our world," she said.

Anakin lowered the landing platform and got out of the pilot's seat. "Ahsoka, go help Rex get the supplies," he said.

Ahsoka nodded and ran to the back of the ship to help Rex and the other clones.

Anakin pulled Amara aside. "Amara... about what I told you last night... even Ahsoka doesn't know. I trust you, but... I know Ahsoka's suspicious already."

Amara nodded. "I understand."

Ahsoka came back with Rex, each of them holding a box of supplies. "Where to, General?" Rex asked.

"We're going to visit a friend..." Anakin said with a smile.

_Ah..._ Amara thought, understanding.

_ Yeah, now you get why I need to be extra... careful..._ Anakin said to her through mind touch, being certain to make sure Ahsoka wouldn't hear him. _It's not that I don't trust Ahsoka—I trust her with my life. It's just... complicated..._

_ I understand. The Jedi aren't allowed to make attachments._

_Yeah._ Anakin walked down the landing platform and looked around. It had been a while since he'd been on Naboo. The last time had been a couple years back. He had a lot of memories about Naboo... it was the place that he and Padme had shared their first kiss, as well as where they were married not too long after that. He tried to get his mind back on the mission. "Let's go," he said.

Ahsoka wasn't entirely sure where they were going. She knew Padme was from Naboo, the two of them were good friends. _I wonder..._ she thought. _Nah, that's not very likely..._ But she knew Anakin and Padme were also quite good friends. Anakin had said they had known each other for a long time.

Amara followed the rest of them. _Maybe sometime if it's possible you two could get away to our... _my_ land,_ Amara told Anakin. _It wouldn't be easy, but you two could have some time alone and not be worried who would find out._

_That would be nice..._ Anakin said with an inward sigh. _I'd have to wait until this war is over, though. ...If it ever ends._

They soon arrived at a little dock. "We have to take boats to the lake," said Anakin, getting in. _This was so romantic when I did it with Padme..._he thought to himself.

Within a few minutes, the boats came to a house on the lake. To most people, it was known as the Lakehouse. Anakin got out first, motioning for the others to follow, and knocked on the door.

The door opened and Padme looked out. She gasped. "Ani?"

"Hello, Senator Amidala," he said, using her formal name to try and raise as little suspicion as possible.

Amara looked at the woman in the door. She could see why Anakin had fallen for her in the first place. She smiled inwardly at the senator's nickname for Anakin.

"What brings you here?" Padme asked.

"We're here on a mission... we were wondering if it'd be possible for us to stay with you," Anakin replied.

"Of course!" Padme said. "There's plenty of room. Oh, I have another person here right now as well. I met her a while ago and she's been staying with me. Her name's Elice. I'm sure she'll be happy to meet you all."

A strange look came over Amara's face.

Ahsoka looked at Amara. _What is it?_ she asked her.

Amara didn't respond.

They all went inside. "Oh, Padme," said Anakin, "this is Amara." He motioned towards Amara. _Do you want to do the explaining?_ he asked her.

_ I will in a few minutes,_ she told him

"Hello, Amara," Padme said with a smile. She called into the other room. "Elice! I want you to meet some people."

A girl around her early 20's walked into view. Her appearance strangely resembled Marth's.

Padme began the introductions. "Elice, this is Anakin, Ahsoka, and—"

"Amara?" Elice cried, noticing the other girl for the first time. Amara seemed slack-jawed. "Elice! What are you doing here?"

"What are _you_ doing here?"

"You two know each other?" Anakin asked, not caring how obvious the question sounded.

"She's from my world," Amara said. She went forward and the two hugged. "She's... Marth's sister."

Rex had been staring at Elice ever since she walked into the room. _She's beautiful..._ he thought to himself. He stepped forward. "I'm Captain Rex," he said with a smile.

Elice smiled. "I'm princess Elice," she said, inclining her head.

_ She's a princess too..._ "A pleasure to meet you, Milady," said Rex.

Elice turned back to Amara. "Amara, if you're here as well, and we were together when that _thing_ happened, does that mean Marth is here?"

Pain filled Amara's eyes. "Elice..."

Anakin and Ahsoka exchanged a glance.

Padme inwardly raised an eyebrow. "Why don't we all go and sit down?" she said, leading them into the sitting room.

After everyone was seated, Elice asked her question again. "Amara, is Marth here?"

Tears crowded Amara's eyes and she gripped the bottom of chair she was sitting on. "Elice, he's dead," she whispered.

Elice paled. "Wh-what?"

"He was killed last night." A single tear escaped Amara's efforts to control them and slid down her cheek.

"He had been captured by Count Dooku," Anakin explained. "We tried to save him, but Dooku got away. Dooku apparently didn't want to take any chances..." He trailed off.

Elice looked horrified. "It can't be..." she whispered.

Anakin fell silent, unable to think of anything else to say.

Amara dipped her head. "I'm so sorry, Elice."

Elice put a hand to her forehead. "I..." She found herself unable to continue.

The entire room was silent for a few minutes straight.

Anakin decided to break the silence. "We've been assigned to go after Dooku, and he's been tracked to Naboo."

Elice blanches even more. "My brother's murderer is _here_?"

Anakin bit his lip. _Maybe I shouldn't have said that..._ "I'm afraid so," he replied.

Elice was struck speechless.

Amara gripped her lightsaber's hilt. "His death won't go unavenged, Elice," she said. "That I promise."

Anakin looked at her. _Careful, Amara. Revenge isn't the Jedi way. However..._ "The Republic has been after Dooku for a long time. I assure you that we will do everything we can to stop him."

_Even so, he can't be allowed to get away with murder like this, _Amara told him._ This isn't the first time he's done something like this, is it? What would_ you _do? Sometimes what seems right and what_ is _right are two entirely different things, Anakin._

Anakin blinked. The words sounded like they had come from him. _You're right, Amara. You're absolutely right._

_I'm not saying make him suffer just for our satisfaction. I'm saying save others from having to bear what I do now._

_I know. That's the goal of a Jedi... to keep peace... Unfortunately, it's a lot harder than it seems..._ Anakin looked to the rest of the group. They were all still silent.

_ It's not what you do; it's the reason behind it. If the intention itself is evil, then the person must take responsibility for their actions._

Anakin once again had the feeling he was talking to someone beyond their years. _What must she have gone through in her life to make her think like this at such a young age?_ He felt that her soul belonged to someone is their late 30's, not someone still in their teens.

The room was silent for another minute or two. Suddenly a golden droid walked into the room. "Mistress Padme—" He stopped and looked, seeing everyone else in the room. "Oh! Hello, I am C-3PO, human cyborg relations. I am fluent in over—"

"You can skip the intro, 3PO," Anakin said with a chuckle.

"Master Ani! Oh, it is so good to see you!" C-3PO said.

Anakin chuckled again. "Amara, this is 3PO, a protocol droid I built when I was a kid."

Amara raised her eyebrows a little. "You _built_ him?" She looked at the droid, impressed.

Elice smiled a little for the first time since she had learned about Marth's death. "Amara, he even speaks our native tongue."  
>3PO spoke again. "Yes, I am fluent in over six million forms of communication."<p>

"Yep, I built him. Then I gave him to Padme to help her with her senate work," Anakin said. _And... just as a gift..._

Amara continued to look at the droid. "_Nihongo ga wakarimasu ka?_" she asked.

"_Hai, okusama. Watashi wadesu_," 3PO told her.

Amara smiled. "Very impressive."

"It's amazing, isn't it?" Elice marveled. She turned to Anakin. "We have nothing like this in our world. It's such a wonder how your universe was able to create such incredible things."

"I've always been good with machines," Anakin told her. "I originally built him to help my mom around the house. He stayed with her for a while, and then..." he trailed off.

"There's a lot of technology around here," Rex said. He was still practically staring at Elice. "I could show some to you sometime."

Elice looked down a little, a faint smile upon her face. "That would be wonderful."

Amara could tell, despite Elice's convincing efforts to appear normal, that she was hurting deeply inside. _We wear a mask that we hide behind so well…_ she thought.

Within the next few minutes, Anakin was back outside with Ahsoka, Amara, and the clones. He spotted Padme going out onto her balcony. "Girls, help Rex and the others get everything ready," he said to them, and walked away.

_Where is he going?_ Ahsoka wondered. But with Anakin, you just never knew, so she obeyed and helped the clones.

Anakin went inside the house again and went out onto the balcony with Padme.

"Anakin," Padme said happily as Anakin embraced her. The two shared a long kiss.

"I've missed you so much, Padme," Anakin whispered in her ear, brushing the hair out of her face.

"I wish we could be together more often," Padme murmured, staring into his light blue eyes.

"I know," Anakin said, hugging her tightly again.

But the moment was over far too soon. Anakin heard someone calling for him. "I have to go, Padme," he told her.

"Alright," Padme said quietly.

Anakin squeezed her hand quickly before rushing back into the house and trying to appear... "normal."

Amara stood in the middle of the room. She raised an eyebrow at Anakin's attempts. "Having a quick moment of fun before we take off?" She smiled knowingly.

Anakin cleared his throat. "Something like that," he said with a wink. They went outside. "Everything ready, Ahsoka?"

"Yep," Ahsoka replied. "Our scanners indicate Dooku is somewhere in that direction." She pointed somewhere between west and northwest. "We're pretty sure he's not going anywhere, because the tracker hasn't moved since we left Coruscant."

"Very good. Let's go," Anakin said.

**Ooh, looks like Rex has taken a liking to Elice. XP Wonder how that'll turn out.**

**Rex: W-what? Have not! =o_o=**

**Me: Yeeeeah…. I beg to differ. /:)**

**Rex: "OTL**

**Stay tuned for chapter 12!**

**(BTW, if it seems like both Amara and Elice aren't really grieving, they are, but as royalty, they're both experienced with hiding their emotions.)**


	12. What's Lost is Found

**Ok, we're finally posting this! xDDDD Question tiiiime! Oh this is Bluey!**

**Since all the questions really revolve around the same thing, I'm just going to say it one time ;)**

**Yes, I know we (oops,*cough*_I_) have been forgetting about Ahsoka, and it is completely unintentional. I'm not trying to make it seem like Anakin's forgetting about Ahsoka, she just doesn't have a really big role at this point in the story. She will be back, don't worry. And about Anakin sharing a lot of things with Amara... he sees that Amara is (more or less) in a situation that he can relate to, and wants to try and help her. He knows that soon, (hopefully) they will be able to get Amara back to her universe, and is trying to help any way he can. Ahsoka understands this as well.**

**From Liv: We've noticed that a lot of you have asked what the Japanese words used in chapters mean, so we've decided to start putting their translations at the end of each chapter when we use any. Where there is a Japanese word or phrase used now, there will be a star (or more, depending on what number it is) next to it. At the end of the chapter in bold you'll find the definition of that word matched up with however many stars were next to the word or phrase it translates. Hope this helps! :)**

**_Emblem Star_**

**_Chapter 12: What's Lost is Found_**

The group arrived at an abandoned field quite some distance away from any civilization. Keeping themselves hidden behind the trees in a nearby forest, they looked out and spotted Dooku.

He was standing near a Separatist frigate, watching his droids load boxes of supplies, ammo, and whatever else he happened to have onto the ship.

Anakin, who was holding a pair of binoculars, got a closer look. "He's got some interesting cargo..." he murmured as he spotted a long, large box. It was so big, you could fit a person inside it. "I wonder what he could be planning..."

"Let me take a look," Amara said.

Anakin handed her the binoculars.

Amara narrowed her eyes a little as she looked through the binoculars, watching Dooku and the droids. "What's that giant box?" she wondered, handing the binoculars back to Anakin.

"I'm not sure," Anakin replied, taking the binoculars as she handed them and looking through them again. "It's certainly not a box for ammo, it's too large."

"Wouldn't be surprised if it was a makeshift casket," Amara muttered, grimacing a little.

Anakin raised an eyebrow. "Why don't we find out? I don't see Dooku. We'll be able to sneak aboard unnoticed."

Amara glanced at him. "Oh sure, until they catch us."

"They won't catch us," Anakin assured her. "Let's go." He led the group quickly to the frigate and ran up the landing platform. Spotting a droid about to make its way up the platform with a box of ammo, he quickly motioned for everyone to hide. From a certain point on the landing platform, the droids wouldn't be able to see them at all.

_Now... where would the droids have taken that box...?_ Anakin wondered as the droid walked by and they were safe to come out again. "This way," he said, his voice low, and he had everyone followed him down one of the hallways.

_Anakin... I'm not liking the feeling of this place..._ Amara told him.

_Trust me, I've been onboard one of these things a couple times too many than I would've liked,_ Anakin said. They passed by the room where Dooku kept all his droids. "Hang on one second," he said, going into the room.

_What are you doing?_ Amara asked him.

_You'll see._

Anakin looked around at the hundreds of thousands of deactivated droids. He quickly found the control panel, yanked the top of it off, and pulled a couple of wires. "No more reinforcements for Dooku..." He ran back out of the room and they continued on their way.

They walked for several more minutes. Suddenly, the sound of metal footsteps echoed down the hallway. Anakin had them all hide while they waited for the droids to pass, hoping that they wouldn't decide to come down the hallway they were in.

When the footsteps seemed to be fading, Anakin looked out of the doorway.

Down at the very far end of the hallway were the droids, holding the large box.

"Quick, this way!" Anakin whispered.

They all ran out, just in time to see the droids turn a corner down another hallway.

Running faster, the group dashed down the hallway and turned down the same hallway the droids had. By this time, the droids were already at the end of the hallway again, and turned the corner a second time. The group quickened their pace even more to catch up. The chase continued on for the next several minutes, the droids always seeming to elude the Jedi and clones by a few more steps.

At last, the group turned down the last hallway they had seen the droids go down, and found that the droids had disappeared.

Panting from all the running, the group stopped, completely unsure of what to do next.

Suddenly, the entire ship shook, and soon it felt like they were moving...

"The ship is flying!" Anakin exclaimed, still keeping his voice low. "Dooku must have finished loading supplies and took off!"

"So we're stuck on here now?" Amara said. _I TOLD him I had a bad feeling about this!_

"It looks that way," Ahsoka said, sighing inwardly. She felt something in the Force. "Guys, this way..." she said, going down one of the hallways.

Anakin raised an eyebrow but followed his Padawan.

The group came to the bridge of the ship, and saw Dooku in one of the chairs, bossing droids around.

"Prepare the course for hyperspace," he ordered one of them.

"Roger, roger," the droid replied, and the ship rocketed into hyperspace.

The large panoramic window that had previously had a view of the many stars was suddenly flooded with the blue tunnels of hyperspace.

Amara glanced at Dooku, then the droids. "What're we going to do? We can't just waltz up and announce we're here."

Anakin didn't hear her. He walked in, glaring at Dooku the whole time. He came right up behind his chair, and ignited his lightsaber.

"_ANAKIN!_" Amara hissed. She quietly slapped her hand against her face. "_Baka*_," she muttered.

Dooku stood up and turned around. "Skywalker... what a pleasant surprise."

"You're under arrest, Dooku." Anakin pointed his lightsaber at Dooku, the tip nearly touching Dooku's clothing.

Dooku didn't answer, but instead ignited his lightsaber. "Droids, destroy them!" He quickly pressed a little button on the armrest of the chair he was now standing by.

The five droids in the room aimed their blasters at the Jedi and clones.

Anakin used the Force to crush them all at once. "You're not getting away this time."

_I swear, if we make it out alive I'm going to kill you,_ Amara told Anakin, igniting her own lightsaber.

_ Let's focus on Dooku, Amara,_ Anakin said back to her.

Dooku walked around slowly, keeping his lightsaber in front of him. "Did you really think you could just board my ship and demand my surrender?"

"We're here to bring you to justice," Anakin said firmly.

"This isn't your fight, Skywalker," said Dooku. He turned to Ahsoka and the clones. "Neither is it yours." He called Anakin and Ahsoka's lightsabers to his hands, and called upon the dark side of the Force, using Force Stun against them all, rendering them unable to fight.

Everyone except Amara.

Amara narrowed her eyes. "And what makes you think it's mine?"

"Because I'm the one who brought you into this world. That was a mistake. Now, you will die... just as your friend before you..." Dooku knew that if he could get her angry about what he supposedly did to Marth... it would be an easy win. Easy.

Amara stared at him, gripping her lightsaber's hilt tighter. "You _what_?"

"To be effective in your plans, you have to deal with complications... I'm simply going to rid myself of this _complication_ in my plan." Dooku held his lightsaber up and prepared to strike.

Amara raised her own lightsaber as well. "_YOU brought us here?_" Her voice was hard.

"To destroy the Jedi!" Dooku exclaimed. "The Jedi have tricked you. The Jedi are nothing more than liars. Everything they've told you is a _lie_."

Amara narrowed her eyes. She knew what he was trying to do. _Get me riled up about my husband, then try and tell me my allies are my enemies._ "I'm already in the business of misery, old man. Bring it."

"So be it." Dooku brought up one of his hands and began to emit bright blue electricity from his fingertips.

Amara raised her own hand, murmuring words of magic. _I'm sorry, Marth. I know you told me not to..._ she thought. The electricity collected into a giant sphere, floating an inch away from her palm.

_How can she do that? The only Jedi I've ever seen be able to do that is Yoda... there is no way she has as much power as Yoda..._ Dooku tried harder, using as much energy as he could to break the sphere of collecting energy.

_What he doesn't realize is the more electricity he shoots at me, the more the orb collects,_ Amara thought. The air around her snapped with the electricity.

_This is pointless._ Dooku finally snapped his hand back, stopping the flow of energy, and brought his lightsaber up in front of him.

Amara closed her eyes as he stopped. A single word left her lips, flowing from her mouth like water.

Her head snapped back as the orb of lightning shot straight back at Dooku.

Dooku furiously held his lightsaber up, and the orb collided with it, creating a burst of light and electricity all around the room. Dooku was thrust several feet backwards.

Amara ran forward, swinging her lightsaber at Dooku.

Dooku brought his lightsaber up to meet hers. He spent a few moments countering her before beginning a series of advanced lightsaber moves. Even Skywalker had a hard time beating him... this girl should be no match, no matter how skilled in the Force she was.

Amara countered every blow that Dooku used against her with remarkable speed and skill.

Both lightsabers met before drawing apart, only to meet again seconds later with remarkable speed. "Skywalker has taught you well," Dooku said. "But you still have much to learn." He sent out a wave of Force to send Amara into confusion. "Did you really think you could beat me?"

Amara shot back at his attack with her own wave of magic. The two waves collided, but hers seemed to engulf his. "You tell me," she countered. "You're the one who always runs away from a fight."

Dooku frowned and swung his lightsaber forward.

The battle between the two of them lasted for several minutes. It seemed as if it would rage on forever. Neither of them seemed to gain a noticeable advantage of the other.

Dooku fought even more fiercely than before. _Focus on your anger, you can beat her!_ he thought.

Amara continued to deliver fast, skilled blows. All of her previous battles flooded back to her mind. Receiving a sudden burst of energy, she swung around, delivering a blow so fierce that Dooku's lightsaber was knocked out of his hand. It deactivated as it skidded to a stop several feet away.

Dooku fell to his knees. _Impossible! How could she have won?_

The blade of Amara's lightsaber was less than an inch from his neck. She looked down at her opponent, and for a long moment was silent. Her face was expressionless.

Anakin, Ahsoka, and the clones had been in a daze of confusion. Slowly they came back to full reality.

Anakin looked over and his jaw dropped at the sight of Dooku on his knees. _How...?_

Amara finally spoke. "The way of the world is an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth." She continued to look down at Dooku. "The price I should make you pay for killing the one I love is death."

Dooku looked up at her, fear filling his eyes for once in who knew how long. Almost everyone else in the room guessed how it would end.

Amara clenched her jaw a little and looked away. "But even I'm not that cold-hearted," she murmured, her voice low. She deactivated her lightsaber.

Anakin's eyes widened. "Amara...!"

Dooku didn't move. He couldn't. He was frozen in place with shock and surprise.

Amara closed her eyes. She muttered something under her breath, and suddenly Dooku collapsed. "He's only asleep," she told Anakin and Ahsoka without turning around.

Anakin ran to the pilot's seat. "Let's get this thing back to Naboo," he said, "before the droids realize what's happened."

Amara only sighed. She gripped her lightsaber's hilt tighter.

Ahsoka walked up to her. "That was very noble," she commented, referring to how she had handled Dooku.

Amara put her lightsaber away. "Even though he destroyed my heart, I couldn't bring myself to kill him," she said. "The anger and hate it required, I didn't have."

"If you stay here, and complete your Jedi training," Ahsoka told her, "I know you'd be a great Jedi Knight."

"I can't," Amara said. "My people are dependent on me. And now that Marth's gone..." She sighed again. "I can't just abandon them."

Ahsoka nodded. "I understand."

Amara was silent for a moment. "Well, at least now maybe we can find that box thing we were after earlier."

"Good idea." Ahsoka looked over at Anakin. "Master, Amara and I would like to go look for that large box."

Anakin nodded. "Sure, just be careful."

Ahsoka rolled her eyes. "There's only like, two droids left on the entire ship."

Amara smiled a little.

"Let's go," said Ahsoka.

The two of them left to search for the box, and walked together in silence for a while.

"What do you think is in the box, Amara?" Ahsoka asked, turning down a hallway and continuing to walk.

Amara grimaced. "Part of me doesn't want to find out," she murmured, thinking of what she had told Anakin earlier. _Wouldn't be surprised if it was a makeshift casket._

"I know what you mean," Ahsoka replied. "It could be anything."

Within the next few minutes, they arrived at a large room with hundreds of boxes stacked up in piles.

"Must be in here somewhere," Amara said, looking around the room.

"I wonder if they have an inventory chart..." Ahsoka mumbled, looking around. She spotted a droid—not a battle droid, specifically, just a droid who got chosen for the job of overseeing the cargo. "Hey, have you seen a large box?" she asked it.

The droid grabbed a data pad, not seeming to care—or know—that there were Jedi searching the cargo bay. "The list does not specify the size," it said.

Ahsoka shrugged and walked away. _So much for that idea._ She turned to Amara. "Any luck yet?" she asked as she continued to search.

Amara looked around. "No, nothing... wait!" She noticed a box like the droids had been carrying earlier. "I think this might be it. Ahsoka, come over here and give me a hand, will you?"

Ahsoka ran over to her. She quickly took the smaller boxes that were on top and put them on the ground. _We're going to have to work together if we're going to lift this,_ she said to Amara through mind touch.

Amara nodded. _On three. One... two... three!_

Ahsoka reached out in the Force, and with the two of them working together, the large box levitated off the floor. "Let's bring it back to the bridge before we open it," she said.

Amara nodded again.

The two of them brought the box all the way back to the bridge.

Ahsoka was glad when they could finally put it down. _We made it!_ she said, mostly to herself, though Amara could probably hear her.

Amara exhaled. _Ahsoka...? I'm worried... about what we'll find..._ She looked up at her friend.

Ahsoka smiled a little. _It'll be ok,_ she assured her. _If it's something dangerous, we can handle it._

Amara shook her head. _That's not what I mean..._

Anakin told one of the clones to take the controls for him and walked over to the box. "Good work, girls," he said. "Let's see what's inside this thing..."

Amara looked at the box worriedly. She wouldn't look away... but she was still worried.

Anakin pressed a couple buttons on the control panel on the side of the box.

The box's clamps unlocked with a small hissing noise, and cold air seeped out from inside in an icy fog. The walls of the box fell to the ground, and when the fog cleared away, it revealed a slab of something cold and dark colored.

"Carbonite?" Ahsoka wondered aloud, staring at the object.

_ It sure looks like carbonite..._ Anakin looked at the shape in the carbonite block. It looked so familiar...

Amara paled a little. "What is that thing...?" she asked, noticing the shape as well.

"Carbonite," Anakin told her. "It's used to freeze life forms for... preservation, usually. It's so cold that it will slow your heart rate so much that you can even pass a life form scanner."

"Preservation...?" Amara whispered. She recognized the face frozen in the carbonite. She paled even more.

Ahsoka put a hand on Amara's shoulder as Anakin began pressing buttons on the side of the carbonite block.

Amara put a hand over her mouth, swallowing back tears.

The carbonite almost looked like it was glowing as it heated up. It started to seem to melt away, slowly revealing the form of a person. As the carbonite continued to dissolve, the form dropped away from what remained of the carbonite, collapsing on the floor.

"Marth!" Amara gasped.

Marth's presence flooded back into the Force.

_He wasn't really dead..._ Anakin realized in awe.

Ahsoka watched with wide eyes.

Amara's eyes filled with tears. "He's alive!" she cried, falling on her knees next to him and throwing her arms around him.

Marth gasped low as he felt her arms around him.

"Marth," Amara whispered.

"Amara?" Marth blinked. "Why can't I see anything?"

"Carbon sickness," Anakin said. "Your vision will be back within an hour or so." He calculated that since it had not been too long since Marth had been frozen, the carbon sickness wouldn't last too long.

Amara wrapped her arms around him tighter. "I thought you were dead," she whispered.

A confused look came over Marth's face. "Dead? Why?"

"We couldn't feel your presence while you were frozen in the carbonite."

"Dooku tricked us," Ahsoka said. "He wanted us to think you were dead!"

"Is he still here?" Marth asked suddenly.

"He is..." Anakin said, glancing over at Dooku. "But he's taken care of until we get back to Naboo."

"Mmh..." Marth blinked again. "I can see a little bit again," he said.

Anakin looked at Marth, then looked to Amara. "You take care of Marth," he said to her. "We're almost back to Naboo." He went back to the pilot's seat as Naboo came into view out of the large windows.

Amara nodded, unable to find her tongue. She gently slid her hand over Marth's and sighed.

Marth smiled and, his eyesight back enough for him to make out her figure, placed a hand against her cheek.

Amara dipped her head. How relieved she was that he was alive, she would never be able to put into words.

…

Elice sat by the window, staring out at the lake in silence. Her eyes were dry, but the dull ache of loss throbbed through her with every heartbeat.

Padme looked at her sympathetically, wishing there was something she could do to ease the pain for her friend.

Within the hour, the sound of a ship landing was heard from some distance away. Padme looked outside the window and saw a Separatist ship land on the other side of the lake. An uneasy feeling set in her stomach, but vanished instantly when she saw Anakin, Ahsoka, Amara, and someone else she didn't recognize coming off the landing platform.

Elice joined her, looking out as the group of people approached. For a long minute she wondered if she was seeing things. But no. A boy with blue hair was being helped along by Amara, leaning on her shoulder a little.

It was Marth.

Elice hurried to the door and threw it open. "Marth!" she cried, hurrying toward them.

Marth looked up in surprise as he heard his sister's voice. "_Onee-chan**_!" he exclaimed. They hurried to reach each other and embraced.

*** Means "idiot" or "stupid". In this case, "idiot".**

**** Term used that means "sister". Also "Onee-San".**

**Stay tuned for the next chapter! :D**


	13. Flowers Like Candles

**Heeeeeey, Liv here! A couple of things before we take off with chapter 13.**

**My computer recently has been getting viruses, so that is why chapter 12 was so late. (My apologies for that. We keep the entire Emblem Star document on my computer since I'm the editor, and I send Bluey updates of it.) My computer is not yet up again, but we're making this work. The bad news is we lost almost 2 chapters because of my computer. The good news is because we do the story through chat, we were able to get it all back from the chat archives. Hooray!**

**And another thing I must say, this chapter was one of our favorites to write. :) (Sorry to all you Ahsoka fans, this chapter is dedicated to the couples in the story. She doesn't make an appearance, but she'll be back in chapter 14.)**

**Now then, questions!**

**CC-645: "What "separatist cruiser" were you mentioning. Because, the Munificent can't land, which lives only grievous' ship from the clone wars (the long one, called the recuscant destroyer) or the separatist dreadnaught (Trench's ship in CW, and Grievous ship in ROTS) or is it something you made up?" A: Heh, you guys are so sharp. ^^; Yeah, we made the cruiser up.**

**Oh, and to Count Mallet, whose question we forgot to answer about chapter 11, Amara asked 3PO, "You speak Japanese?" And 3PO responded, "Yes, milady. I do."**

**Ok now, here we go! (Warning: Chapter effects may include fangirly squeals/giggling, romantic feelings, and moments of "Awww!")**

_**Emblem Star**_

_**Chapter 13: Flowers Like Candles**_

Amara sat cross-legged next to the water's edge, the Lakehouse's mellow light and stars above providing just enough light to see by. By her side was an assortment of lily, hibiscus, and gardenia-like flowers she had found. She picked one from the bunch, carefully twisting the stem off it, leaving only the flower. Flower cupped in her hands, she held it close to her face and whispered magic over it. The underside petals carefully sealed together, making the flower like a bowl. She whispered a few more words, and the flower's petals gained a soft glow, like candlelight. She set it down gently in the water, watching it ever-so-slowly float away for a few moments before starting the process over again with another flower.

Marth watched her from the doorway of the Lakehouse for a few minutes before quietly walking over and sitting down next to her.

Amara looked up at him, sliding over a little and resting her head against his shoulder.

Marth put his arms around her. For a minute they silently watched Amara's floral creations float along on the water.

"I've missed you," Amara said quietly, snuggling her head under his chin.

Marth sighed. "So have I."

"It was horrible, thinking you were dead," she told him, drawing away enough to look at him straight in the eyes.

Marth let his hands trail down her arms. "I'm sure it was."

She touched his jaw gently, fingers trailing along it a little. She looked him over. "You sure you feel ok? You were in that carbonite for a while."

Marth chuckled a little. "Cut it out, that tickles. Relax, I'm fine. I'm not the one we should be worrying about here." He smiled and looked at her pointedly.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Amara smiled.

"Wherever you go, you always seem to get yourself into trouble."

She raised an eyebrow, still smiling. "Uh huh," she said playfully, tickling his jaw, this time intentionally.

Marth started to laugh. "Enough," he said, drawing away a little from her dancing fingers.

"Which one of us was it who got captured and had to be rescued?"

"That wasn't my fault."

"And that time when you walked off in the middle of the night when you were partially ill and nearly got yourself killed?"

"No one was supposed to know we were hiding in that part of the woods."

"And yet you say I always get into trouble." Amara smiled again.

"But it's the prince's job to rescue his princess," Marth murmured, leaning in so that he was close to her ear. "It's not supposed to be the other way around."

"But there are times when even the princess plays the role of knight," Amara whispered, kissing him on the lips. They lost track of time for a long moment.

After their long kiss they both looked out at the water, which was decorated by at least twenty or so floating flowers, each still glowing softly like a candle in the moonlight. Amara took another flower from her bouquet and repeated her earlier process with it. After it gained its glowing light she set it down in the water, and the two of them watched as it slowly made its way farther and farther out, following the others out across the lake, like fragrant stars in a dark blue sky.

…

Anakin and Padme stood on the balcony, looking out at the stars in the sky. For some reason, the stars almost looked prettier from down on the ground. Almost never did Anakin get to stop and admire them, and even rarer that he could enjoy it with Padme.

He had his arm around her, holding her close to him. The two didn't really say much; the beautiful silence had something almost magical about it.

Padme looked out and saw glowing flowers drifting away on the lake. The way they were lit up ever so softly made the scene look picturesque. With a soft sigh she laid her head against Anakin's chest and closed her eyes.

Anakin closed his eyes as well and gently pressed his head against hers.

After a long minute she opened her eyes, looking up at him, and their eyes locked for a moment.

They slowly moved closer, and kissed for a long minute, enjoying every precious second.

Then, they just stood there for a while… enjoying the peacefulness and each other.

…

Rex walked through the hallway which led to the bedrooms and happened to see that one of the doors was slightly open. He knocked quietly on the door and waited.

There was silence for a moment, then footsteps and the door opened. Elice stood inside. "Captain Rex? What are you doing here?"

"Oh, ah..." He froze up a bit. He hadn't realized this was Elice's room. "Just... walking around, Milady. I saw your door opened a little and got curious."

"Ah, I see." There was silence for a long moment.

Rex shifted his weight, feeling a bit awkward. "You want to... go for a walk? Or something...?"

Elice smiled. "I'd love to."

The two of them went outside and walked around to the other side of the house. Elice looked up at the sky. "It's so beautiful out here," she said.

"So are you..." Rex breathed. "I-I mean, you're right."

Elice looked over at him for a moment before looking away, blushing a little.

Staring out at the lake, Rex noticed a couple glowing flowers floating towards the shore. He bent down and picked one up as it came close enough for him to reach. He handed it to Elice with a smile.

Elice smiled gently, taking the flower from his hands. Cupping it in her own, she held it close to her face and breathed in the fragrant scent.

Rex gazed dreamily at Elice. As a clone, never before had he been able to experience love. Even now, he knew that this probably wouldn't be able to last. But at least he could enjoy it while he could.

Elice opened her eyes and gazed over at Rex. "Captain Rex? Is everything alright?" she asked.

"Yes, everything's alright, Sir!" He stopped, realizing what he had said. "I-I mean, yes, everything's fine, Milady. Forgive me, I'm trained for battle... and not too much else," he told her with a sigh.

Elice smiled. "I understand."

"And... you can just call me Rex." He smiled back at her.

"Of course... Rex," Elice said with another smile.

Rex felt his heart skip a beat. He couldn't find the words to reply to her and looked out across the lake again, taking a deep breath of the fresh air.

Elice stroked one of the petals of the flower with her index finger. Looking down at it, her face was gentle and smiling.

Rex looked up at the moon. "It's probably pretty late..." He looked back to Elice. "We should probably go back inside."

Elice nodded. "I suppose so."

Rex began to walk, pausing to wait for Elice, and the two went back to the house together.

They reached Elice's room not long after. Elice turned to Rex. "Thank you, Rex," she said, smiling.

Rex was certain he felt his cheeks turn red. "You're welcome, Milady," he replied, bowing courteously.

Elice smiled again. "Goodnight, Rex," she told him before quietly closing the door.

"Goodnight," Rex whispered to the closed door before making his way back to the room he was staying in. _That… was the best night of my life,_he thought to himself happily.

**Hehe, looks like Rex is falling in love. And maybe Elice is starting to like him, too? But, he's a captain and she's a princess. Not only that, but they're separated by two entirely different worlds. This can't end well... can it?**

**Stay tuned for chapter 14!**

**(edited by Bluey: EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE 8DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD)**


	14. The Art of Swordsmanship

**__Bluesaber here! Ok, questions then on to the story! :DDD**

**... It seems there _aren't _any questions, so I guess on to the story! Oh wait one thing first: Dawn, you made me laugh so hard with the "ta-ta you loser" thing. I seriously LOL'd XDDDDDDDDDD Ok, to the chapter! 8D**

**_Emblem Star_**

**_Chapter 14: The Art of Swordsmanship_**

The following morning, a Jedi cruiser landed on Naboo. Obi-Wan stepped off the landing platform. He remembered Naboo well...

Turning to his clone commander, Cody, he put a hand to his beard thoughtfully. "I'll contact Anakin and let him know we're here," he said. When Cody nodded, Obi-Wan pulled out a comlink.

"Anakin, are you there?" he said into the device.

"I'm here, Master. Where are you?"

"I've just landed on Naboo," Obi-Wan replied, and told him their location.

"Good. We're not too far. We'll be there shortly," Anakin replied.

Within the next few minutes, Obi-Wan spotted the _Twilight_ coming towards him. It landed not too far from the cruiser. He walked up to the smaller ship and waited as the landing platform was lowered.

Amara stepped down the platform, followed by Ahsoka and Marth, and shortly after, Anakin.

Obi-Wan saw Dooku. He appeared to be unconscious, but he wasn't in binder cuffs or any kind of imprisonment. "Isn't it a little risky to not tie him up?" he asked.

Amara shook her head. "I'm keeping him in a deep sleep with magic," she told him. "And, if we could please hurry and imprison him that would be great, because I've had to maintain the spell for almost 24 hours, including while I slept, and it's really starting to take a toll on me now."

Obi-Wan nodded. "We're going to take him to the prison level on the cruiser." He led them all to the prison level within a few minutes. Once Dooku was in the cell, they turned on the energy field.

Amara released the magic with a sigh. Marth touched her gently on the arm. She smiled up at him a little.

"Good work, everyone." Obi-Wan paused and turned to Marth. "I don't believe we've met. I'm Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi."

Marth bowed his head. "I'm prince Marth of Altea."

"Marth?" Obi-Wan knew that name. _I thought they said he was dead..._ "You're alive," he said in mild astonishment.

Marth nodded. "Apparently I was frozen in carbonite to make everyone believe I was dead," he told him.

Obi-Wan put a hand to his beard in deep thought. "Interesting..." He trailed off. "Well, I'm glad to know that you're still living."

"We should probably bring Elice with us before we leave, in case we find a way to get home soon," Amara said.

Anakin nodded.

…

Amara and Anakin's lightsabers collided for the hundredth time before being drawn apart again. They stood in the arena from their last duel, getting in some training.

Anakin was impressed with her skills. She was learning a lot.

Marth and Ahsoka watched from the sidelines. Marth gazed at his wife in awe as the duel raged on. "Never knew she could do _that_," he said, referring to her abilities with her lightsaber. To try some of the movements she was using with it with a sword would be nearly impossible.

Ahsoka grinned, looking at Marth. "There's a lot of things you can do with a lightsaber that you can't do with other weapons." She turned her attention back to the duel as the sound of lightsaber on lightsaber was heard repeatedly.

Amara and Anakin continued to deliver fast blows until Amara suddenly backed away from him. "Enough," she said with a smile. "The duel has gone on for long enough."

Anakin nodded, deactivating his lightsaber and returning it to his belt. "Good match, Amara," he told her.

Amara nodded. "Indeed." She took a long breath and they both walked over to Ahsoka and Marth.

Ahsoka smiled as she walked over. She enjoyed watching sparring matches, and liked to take notes for use in future battles.

Marth went over as well. "You fight so differently when using a lightsaber than when you use your sword."

Amara shrugged. "Fighting styles vary depending on the weapon being used."

Anakin thought about this for a moment. "How would one use a sword?" he asked.

"I could show you," Amara offered. "But it would be easier with an opponent."

"Sorry, Amara," Marth told her. "The Falchion seemed to disappear when we were brought to this place."

"Maybe not as much as you think," a voice said behind them. They all turned around to see Elice making her way towards them.

Ahsoka raised her eyebrow slightly. Anakin looked as confused as she was.

As Elice approached, Marth noticed what she was holding in her hands. "The Falchion?" he exclaimed, referring to the blade in its sheath that Elice was gripping.

Elice nodded. "Do you remember how you had handed it to me just before we were teleported? When I woke up afterwards I still had it." She handed her brother his sword.

Anakin looked at the sword. He found these weapons to be interesting. Very different, but very interesting.

Marth took the blade gratefully from his older sister.

Amara smiled. "So?"

Marth nodded. "Alright."

Amara grabbed her sword from where it had been propped up against the seats, and the two of them went out to the center of the arena.

Ahsoka watched them with excitement. Anakin was quite curious as well.

Elice watched her brother and sister-in-law calmly as they prepared to start.

Amara held her sword in one hand, as did Marth. For a few moments neither made a move. Suddenly Marth raised his sword and swung at her. Amara brought hers up and the satisfying sound of metal against metal rung out. Neither moved again for a few moments. Another blow was made. Then another. Amara twisted her blade around, bringing both hands to hold its hilt, and aimed for Marth's shoulder.

Marth grabbed the Falchion with both hands as well and blocked the blow. Their blows started to come quicker, the experience of both wielders showing through their attacks and blocks. The two swords glinted in the light fiercely as the speed at which they moved increased to incredible heights. The sound of the two blades colliding against each other over and over again came in patterns and rhythm. Both Amara and Marth matched the other's movements equally, countering each blow.

Their movements were smooth yet fast. After many minutes of sparring one blow came fiercer than the others, and both Amara and Marth stood after it had been delivered, weight against their blades as the two swords pressed against each other in the air for a long moment without drawing apart.

"Enough," Marth told her. They both lowered their weapons.

Ahsoka and Anakin were speechless for a moment. "Impressive," said Anakin.

"That was amazing!" Ahsoka exclaimed.

Both Amara and Marth smiled. Amara sheathed her blade. "That is how we are both used to fighting," she told them.

"Very interesting." Anakin thought for a moment. "How effective are those weapons against droids?"

Amara thought for a moment. "Normally for swords? It depends on the metal the droids are made out of is."

Anakin nodded. _That's why lightsabers are more effective around here,_ he thought to himself. Even though he was pretty sure he'd never quite figure out a sword entirely, it certainly was interesting to watch.

…

Marth sat alone on one of the benches in the temple gardens. Night had fallen, with the moon shining above. Marth closed his eyes and sighed. It had been a hard past few days for him.

Suddenly he felt gentle hands rest on his shoulders from behind him. He smiled as he recognized them to be Amara's.

He turned enough to look at her face.

"What are doing, out here all alone?" Amara asked him, her voice quiet and gentle.

"Wishing that my princess would be by my side," he told her with a smile.

Amara smiled and kissed his cheek before coming around to sit beside him on the bench.

Marth cupped her cheek in one of his hands.

"How are we going to get back home?" she asked him. He could tell from the tone of her voice she had been thinking about it for a while.

"We'll figure something out," Marth assured her, his voice low. He let his hand slide from her cheek to under her chin. They both slowly drew together, leaning in to kiss.

Just at that moment, Obi-Wan happened to be walking near the gardens and spotted them. Slightly speechless, he walked closer. "Forgive me for the intrusion, but _what_ are you two doing?"

Amara and Marth both jumped a little at the sound of Obi-Wan's voice, startled. They turned in unison to see him standing there. Amara blushed a little. "Uh..."

Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow, his expression clearly stating he wanted an explanation.

Marth and Amara glanced at each other. Suddenly Amara's face broke into a smile and she couldn't suppress a giggle. They felt like two kids who had sneaked away under their parents' watchful gaze and had just been caught. And, in a way, that was exactly what had happened.

"Well...?" Obi-Wan's stern look seemed to hide an amused smile beneath.

"I know what you must be thinking... but you've got it wrong," Marth tried to explain, unable to suppress a smile from his own face.

"I might have the wrong idea, yes, but if I'm wrong, then I'm sure you wouldn't mind correcting me..."

Amara and Marth exchanged glances. "I guess the secret's as good as out," Marth said. "We... we're married," he explained to Obi-Wan. "It's not like I'm doing anything without her family's consent..." He stopped, realizing just how awkward that sounded.

Amara burst into laughter as her husband blushed.

Obi-Wan chuckled. "Well, I'll leave you two then," he said, amused. He smiled at them and walked away, the smile staying on his face for a little bit longer as he thought about them.

Amara continued to laugh even after Obi-Wan had left. "I can't believe you said that," she told Marth.

"I... I wasn't think straight," Marth said, still blushing a little. "The look he gave us just made me feel so guilty I couldn't think straight." They looked at each other before bursting into laughter again.

It took a few minutes for the two of them to calm down again. Amara sighed and rested her head against Marth's shoulder. For a few moments they were both silent.

"Did you ever find out what Dooku wanted from you?" Amara asked without lifting her head. Her voice was quiet and gentle.

"I don't know," Marth sighed. "He kept saying I had this power that the Separatists wanted to use against the Jedi. Like some great amount that could take them all out."

Amara looked at him. "Why would he think…?"

"I don't know," Marth answered truthfully. "I told him the truth, that he must have had the wrong person. But he wouldn't listen to me."

Amara was silent. She thought for a long moment before she spoke again. "Dooku is the one who brought us here."

Marth looked at her, partly surprised. "I suppose I should have suspected it…" he said. "But it's still a bit of a shock."

"Marth…" Amara started to say slowly. "How exactly did Dooku describe the power he wanted from you?"

Marth shrugged a little. "He said it was a great power. I'm pretty sure he had the wrong person, though." There was a certain hint of something in his voice… was it worry?

"Marth…" Amara's voice seemed to become horror-filled as she thought. "I think I know who it is Dooku wants."

Marth's face was grim. She could tell he was thinking the exact same thing as she was.

"It wasn't you he was after…" Her voice was barely a whisper as she looked into his eyes with her own wide ones. She lost her tongue and it took her a moment to be able to find it again and finish her sentence. "… It was me."

…

Dooku sat alone, chained by the binders the Jedi had put on him. Captured. _How _could he be captured? The only beings ever able to capture him had been the pirates on Florrum… and that was because of the sheer number of them. Certainly _one _person should not be able to beat him so quickly. So _easily_.

_That girl_… he thought. It was _she _who had defeated him. But _how_? That was something Dooku was still asking himself. The boy he had brought from her universe apparently had no more power than any other normal person. Why should that girl be any different?

That's when he realized. Looking back, he remembered the way she fought against him; not only with the light saber, but with some greater power…

…And not all of it felt like the Force.

Within the heat of the battle he hadn't realized the absence of the glowing Force presence which normally accompanied Force abilities.

_ Her abilities aren't from the Force_… As the realization finally set in, another dawned upon him.

He had known from the moment Amara and Marth addressed each other he had made a mistake during the teleportation. He had meant to bring only one of them here. Instead, he had teleported both of them.

he suddenly knew that it wasn't the boy they needed; it was her.

His mind quickly began to develop a plan.

If he could capture Amara, his victory would be easily won.

**What will happen next? D: I must know! Oh wait, I do. HAHA. :D XDDD Stay tuned! (and review! pretty please? :3)**


	15. Capture

**Hey, everyone! Liv here. It's finally time for chapter 15.**

**TARDISjedigirl: "Okay, here is my question: What did you think of the last episode of the Clone Wars? Cos I pretty much want to kill Lux Bonteri right now. :P" A: Haha, I myself couldn't stop laughing and thinking, "That wasn't a real kiss! He was crushing her face!" Bluey's never liked Lux, so you can imagine how she was. xD (edit by bluey: Actually, I was just laughing hysterically the whole scene XDDDDDD and I was literally CRYING with laughter when Ahsoka said she was Lux's betrothed XDDDDD)**

**SWA'SBIGGESTFAN: "Quick question...was 'Amara thought for a moment. "Normally for swords? It depends on the metal the droids are made out of is."' a typo? Amara's last sentence (esp. the "is") doesn't really make sense. By Anakin's answer, I know what she was getting at, but still... I hate it when I can't understand something. :(" A: Umm, probably. But at the moment we're too lazy to try and figure it out. Sorry. ^^; (edit by bluey: I think the "is" could be removed.)**

**Here comes chapter 15!**

**_Emblem Star_**

**_Chapter 15: Capture_**

"Why do you think the Council wants to see us again so soon?" Amara wondered aloud to Ahsoka and Anakin as they made their way to the Council chambers, upon the Council's request.

"Another mission, maybe," Anakin suggested as they reached the door and were told to enter.

The three of them stood in the middle of the room and for a moment, it was completely silent.

Master Windu broke the silence.

"Count Dooku has escaped," he told them rather bluntly.

Anakin resisted the urge to roll his eyes. _Why am I not surprised… Yet another time he's slipped out of our grasp..._

Amara was silent for a moment. "How did he escape?" she asked.

"We're not sure," said Obi-Wan. "The surveillance cameras were shut off right at the time of his escape, and came back on after he was already gone."

Amara glanced down for a moment, thoughtful. "Do we go after him?"

"Yes," Windu told her. "We've tracked him to Teth. You will leave immediately."

_Teth..._ Anakin thought to himself. He hadn't been to Teth since the beginning of the war... right after Ahsoka had been assigned as his Padawan.

Ahsoka was rather excited to return to Teth. She waited for the Council to dismiss them.

Anakin looked at the Council members. "We will set out right away," he said.

"Very well." Yoda nodded, signalling that they were dismissed, and the three of them gave a small bow of respect.

As soon as they left the Council room, they went directly to the hanger to prepare. "Rex, we're going to Teth," Anakin told the captain.

Rex nodded. "What's the occasion?"

"Dooku's escaped. We're going after him."

Rex nodded again and began to get ready to leave.

…

Marth listened intently as Amara told him what had been discussed with the Council. "So you're leaving?" he inquired as she finished.

Amara nodded. "They need me." She looked into his eyes.

Gazing into her own, he said quietly, "I'd prefer if you didn't go."

"Honestly?" she whispered. "So would I."

Marth placed a hand against her cheek. "Just be safe."

Amara placed her hand over his and looked into his eyes for a moment longer before she fell into his arms, and the two of them kissed in each other's embrace.

Anakin walked up to them a minute later. "Amara, it's time to leave."

Still in her husband's arms, Amara glanced at him reluctantly. "I'll be there in a second."

Anakin nodded. "Try and hurry." He turned and left.

Amara looked back to Marth. "I need to go..."

Marth let his hands slide down her arms to her own hands. "Let me know when you get back."

"I will," she promised. She kissed him quickly on the lips one last time before hurrying away to the landing platform.

…

The Jedi cruiser came out of hyperspace after a few hours. A little ways away from the planet, they spotted several Separatist frigates barricading the planet.

_Great..._ Anakin thought, seeing the massive ships. "Everyone to the hanger! We're going to need to break that barricade before we can land on the planet."

Ahsoka turned to Amara when they reached the hanger. "Have you ever flown a fighter before?"

Amara stared at her blankly.

Ahsoka smiled a little sheepishly. "Sorry, I forgot." She walked over to a Y-wing fighter. "I'll pilot, you can be my gunner."

"Alright..." _What am I getting myself into?_ Amara thought to herself.

Ahsoka climbed into the pilot's seat and waited for Amara to get into the turret behind her. They waited for the signal, and soon everyone took off and flew out.

The ships got into formation as they flew towards the Separatist frigates. It didn't take long for vulture droids to come into target range, firing at them.

Anakin turned sharply to avoid the blaster fire, shooting at them every time he had a spare second.

The first wave of droids seemed short, but it wasn't long before a larger group flew at them. Ahsoka's Y-wing sped towards the droids. "Amara, now!"

Amara shot at their enemies, bringing the majority of them down.

Only a few minutes later, Anakin commed Ahsoka and Amara's ship. "Grievous is here," he warned them. "Focus on destroying his fighter."

"On it," said Ahsoka, turning the ship sharply to the left and flying after Grievous.

Amara aimed carefully at Grievous' starfighter before firing repeatedly.

Anakin spotted another wave of vulture droids flying towards him, cutting him and about half the clones off from following Grievous. He commed Ahsoka and Amara again. "Go after Grievous, I'm afraid I'm a little busy!"

Ahsoka nodded, silently acknowledging her master's order.

Grievous appeared to be passing through the blockade down to the surface of the planet. "Amara," Ahsoka told her, "keep an eye out and destroy any droids that you can. We're going to crash right through the blockade." Skillfully she piloted the ship towards the giant Separatist frigates which were guarding the planet.

"On it," Amara told her.

Within the next few minutes, Ahsoka and Amara, along with the other half of the clones, landed on the planet's surface. Ahsoka quickly got out of the ship. "Grievous landed over there," she said, pointing a little ways away where Grievous was getting out of his starfighter.

"Hurry," Amara told her, beginning to run.

Ahsoka ran after her, the clones following close behind.

Grievous ignited all four of his lightsabers as they drew closer. "I've been waiting for you, Jedi scum."

Amara skidded to a halt, drawing her own lightsaber. "Grievous," she said. "I have heard about you."

"You are the child Count Dooku speaks of?" Grievous found it hard to believe Dooku had been defeated by _her_.

Amara narrowed her eyes, but could not suppress the smallest smile. "Looks can be terribly deceiving."

Grievous twirled his lightsabers in rapid circles, filling the air with their humming.

Amara ignited her lightsaber and twirled it around with one hand until she had the grip she wanted on it.

Grievous slowly walked closer to Amara, his vortex of lightsabers ready to slice her into a million pieces.

For a split second Amara closed her eyes, calling upon her magic and the Force to give her enhanced speed. Her eyes opened again suddenly and she sped forward, lightsaber drawn back before she struck.

Ahsoka noticed an army of droids marching towards them. She knew that she should help Amara with Grievous, but with the droids shooting at them, it'd be hard for either of them to do anything. She slashed quickly at the closest droid.

Grievous clashed his lightsabers against Amara's, thrusting forward to push her back.

Amara hissed out a few words of magic, creating a wall of force behind her heels for her to push against. She reached out with her mind, focusing on Grievous' consciousness. She felt every move he made with her mind, giving her more of an advantage than her eyes alone could. She pushed off against the wall of energy, thrusting herself forward, and swung her lightsaber at Grievous again.

Using one lightsaber to block Amara's, Grievous used the other three lightsabers to swing at her in various directions.

Amara felt the movement of the lightsabers in her mind and quickly ducked away from them, bringing her lightsaber away from Grievous'. With enhanced speed she fended off the other three simultaneously.

Grievous circled around her, slashing one lightsaber after another. He may not have had the Force, but he could beat her with size and strength, just like nearly every Jedi who dared to cross blades with him.

Amara continued to fend off his lightsabers, one after the other, like a cycle. Every attack he made, she countered exactly. She focused on his every move, feeling each thrust and movement of his muscles and four lightsabers, following them the way a puppet follows its master's movements by attachment of the strings.

Pressing all four of his lightsabers in a giant X-like shape, he jumped over her and began attacking from behind. _I will not let this child defeat me._

Amara whirled around, blocking all four of his lightsabers at the same time. As he withdrew to attack she thrust her lightsaber forward.

Grievous began twirling two of his lightsabers, slashing and defending with the other two. He quickly crossed the two twirling blades into an X, thrusting them forward fiercely towards her neck.

Amara leaned back flexibly, moving in unison with the lightsabers to avoid them. She closed her eyes as she leaned back as far as she could, time seeming suspended for a moment. She came back up as the lightsabers withdrew and slashed out furiously.

Grievous jumped backwards and held his lightsabers defensively, his yellow eyes glaring at her.

A little ways off, Ahsoka and the clones were still fighting against the vast army of droids that seemed to be endless. Slowly, she and the clones were being drawn away from Grievous and Amara.

Ahsoka looked back, seeing the tiny figures of Grievous and Amara in the distance. Should she choose to go back and help Amara, the droids would only keep on coming. Reluctantly, Ahsoka returned her full focus to the droids, hoping Amara would be okay on her own.

Amara continued to attack and counter Grievous. "This can only last for so long," she told him, slashing out.

Grievous narrowed his eyes. "It will end when I have your lightsaber in my hand as a prize."

Amara growled something at Grievous in an unrecognizable language. The words rung in his ears longer than they should have.

He continued to attack her. He had a plan to carry out, and he would _not_ let her upturn them by defeating him.

Amara continued to counter him. She was so intently focused on him and his every move, she didn't notice the movement behind her before it was too late.

Suddenly she felt a sharp prick in the back of her neck, and everything began to blur. She put a hand to her neck where she had felt the small pain, to find a poison dart embedded in the skin of her neck. She managed to murmur a curse at Grievous before she fell to the ground, the poison in the dart rendering her unconscious.

Grievous grabbed her lightsaber and clipped it to his belt. He looked at the droid who had shot the dart. That being all the acknowledgement given, Grievous grabbed Amara's arms and dragged her across the rough, rocky ground.

…

Ahsoka sliced through what must have been the thirtieth droid _at least_. Finally she spotted Anakin and the rest of the clones flying above their heads.

Anakin shot down at the droids from the sky, and with the help of the clones they managed to kill off the rest of them in a few minutes.

Landing his ship, Anakin got out, seeing Ahsoka running. He called out to her. "Ahsoka! Where are you going?"

"To find Amara! The droids drew us away from her. She was fighting Grievous." She turned and didn't bother to look back, running as fast as she could all the way back to the place she had seen Amara and the cyborg last. But when she got there, they were gone; and so was Grievous' ship.

Ahsoka bit her lip. "We're too late."

Anakin and the clones soon caught up to her.

"They're gone." Ahsoka turned to face them.

"We'll find her, Ahsoka." Anakin looked around. There was no trace of Grievous' ship anywhere. He must have already left the planet completely. "We're going to have to go back."

"Is that really the best idea?" Ahsoka asked. "She could still be here somewhere!"

Anakin attempted to comm Amara. When there was no reply, he looked back to Ahsoka. "We have to go back to Coruscant. It's the best thing we can do right now."

Ahsoka sighed. "Alright."

They made it back in their starfighters and Y-wings and flew back to the Jedi cruiser, and within the next few minutes, the ship disappeared into hyperspace.

**Oh noes! It doesn't look good for Amara. How's Marth going to handle his wife getting captured? Will they be able to save her? How come there were no Relice scenes again in this chapter? Why am I asking you people all these questions?**

**Anywayyyy, chapter 16's coming soon! (Along with more Relice. :3) Hang tight!**


	16. Plans of Action

**Hiiiiiiii, everybody! Liv here. SO SORRY it's been FOREVER since we've last updated! In all honesty, the chapter would have been ready to publish sometime last week, but_someone_ *cough*Bluey*cough* kept dragging their feet about writing a certain scene in chapter 16 that they had to do. (edit by Blue: It not my fault i was busy! D: ) But anyway, it's here now! Lots of jumping around to different characters in this chapter, but good news for all you Relice fans! This chapter and the next are 50%-75% dedicated to them. Yay! Gah, I love these two. X3 Oh, right, questions!**

**Pergjithshme: "Off topic, but, I'm on a website where we take pics with our SW figures and put them up and comment on them, and I also love writing Fan Fiction. For both accounts, could I borrow some of the characteristics (like Aayla and her crayons, Ahsoka and her pickles), and even the scenes that you gave the epic SW peoples in NSNW(1-3/as many more as there will be)?" A: Bluey says she'll think about it and let you know when she decides.**

**Again, we apologize for the long wait, but wait no longer! And we promise chapter 17 will be out soon. (Sooner than chapter 16 took.)**

**_Emblem Star_**

**_Chapter _****_16: Plans of Action_**

Marth stood on the landing platform, arms folded across his chest as he watched the sky, patiently waiting for the _Twilight_ to return. He saw the ship fly into view and watched as it landed.

He walked over as Anakin, Ahsoka, and a couple clones came down the landing platform, looking at them a bit curiously.

"Where's Amara?" he asked them.

Exchanging a quick glance, Anakin and Ahsoka looked at him. "She was captured," Anakin said bluntly. _No use hiding it from him..._

Shock slowly flooded into Marth's face. "What?" he exclaimed.

"We'll find a way to get her back," Ahsoka quickly assured him.

Marth was silent. His fist was clenched. "What happened," he demanded. The tone of his voice told them he was more than ready to set out immediately to rescue her.

"She was separated from the rest of us while she was fighting Grievous," Anakin said. "Once we figure out a plan, we'll set out to find her."

"And just what do you plan to do? If Dooku has her he won't hold back against her until she agrees to submit to him."

"I _plan_ to not rush into this. I know the consequences of jumping right in without a plan," Anakin told him. "Wouldn't you rather we actually _save_her than get ourselves captured, too?"

"Just how long do you propose planning will take?" Marth demanded. "We don't have time to perfect ever miniscule detail."

"First we have to figure out where Dooku has taken her. Then we have to come up with a plan to get there and rescue her without being attacked by the entire Separatist army. If Dooku wants her power, he won't be taking any chances."

"Don't you realize? Of course he won't be taking any chances; he will try his hardest to get her to submit as soon as possible, to avoid taking chances. Waiting too long may result in us being too late. Why didn't you start thinking about a way to rescue her while you were idling back here? Or better yet, contact the Council and have _them_ be figuring something out while you were returning?"

"I didn't have the chance. And now the longer you stand here complaining about the details being perfect, the longer it's going to take me." Anakin could feel himself growing impatient, tension twisting into his voice.

Marth's face was hard. "I refuse to let anything happen to my wife, whether _you_ had the time or not." His voice was low.

Ahsoka's eyes widened as she heard Marth. _They're married?_ she thought to herself. Yet thinking back, she wondered how she hadn't realized it sooner.

"Don't make the mistake of thinking you're the only one who cares about her, Marth," Anakin said, the tone of his voice changing slightly.

Marth sighed. He dipped his head. "Please," he said, his voice quiet but desperate. "I don't want him to hurt her. I just want to rescue her before that happens."

"I know. We'll find her, I promise. I'm going to report our mission to the Jedi Council. After that, we'll figure out what to do."

Marth nodded without looking any of them in the eye.

Anakin gestured to Ahsoka, and the two made their way to the Council room.

…

Amara managed to open her eyes as she awoke from her groggy, unconscious state. She blinked a few times and looked around at the dark room she was now in. Her hands arms were secured up to her elbows. She slowly remembered what had happened before she had been knocked out.

The door to the cell opened and Dooku walked in. Pleased to see that she was awake, he smiled. "So glad you could drop by..."

Amara didn't acknowledge his presence. She continued to stare down at the floor underneath her.

"Now that I have you, you will serve me as a tool for the Separatists."

Amara didn't raise her head. "No," she said, her voice deadly low.

"If you do not do it willingly, you will pay the price..." Dooku stretched out his hand and began emitting the bright blue electricity at her. And with her bindings, she would not be able to block it this time.

Amara buckled in her restraints at the pain. She clenched her teeth, refusing to let herself cry out. She felt the toll the electricity took on her body begin to grow worse as Dooku electrocuted her harder. But still she refused to cry out or plead for mercy.

Dooku finally stopped, saying nothing. If he couldn't get her to use her power for the Separatists on her own, he had ways of doing so otherwise...

Amara took a shaky breath as he stopped. Her restraints kept her from using magic, leaving her utterly defenseless.

Dooku turned and walked out of the cell without a word. But he left Amara with his ominous voice echoing throughout her mind repeatedly. _I will be back..._

Amara closed her eyes. "And I'll be waiting," she said to herself, her voice low and hard.

…

The members of the Jedi Council were deep in thought for many long minutes, even after they had dismissed Anakin and Ahsoka.

"If the Separatists were to get a hold of her power, it could be the end for all of us," said Ki-Adi, the Cerean Jedi Master.

Mace nodded. "Indeed. Her rescue is imperative to not only the Republic, but the entire Jedi Order."

"A rescue method, come up with, we must," Yoda stated.

"Skywalker most likely is already thinking about attempting a rescue with his Padawan whether we assign them or not," said Master Shaak Ti, only half joking. "Perhaps we should save him the trouble and assign him ourselves."

"Would that really be the best idea?" Mace questioned.

"Who else would we send?" Obi-Wan asked. "Anakin and Ahsoka know the girl better than we all do. If anyone has a chance at finding and saving her, it's them."

After a quick exchange of glances with Yoda, Mace nodded. "Very well; Skywalker and Padawan Tano will set out immediately."

"What about the girl's friend and his sister?" Ki-Adi asked. "Surely they must be protected. It's possible the Separatists could go after them as well."

"Thought about that, Master Windu and I have. Assign body guards to them, we will," said Yoda.

"Clone Captain Rex of Skywalker's battalion will be assigned to Lady Elice, and Clone trooper Shark to Marth," Mace stated.

"Agreement, are we all in?" Yoda asked.

All the Council members nodded, and the meeting was dismissed.

…

Rex leaned his weight on the side of a tree, watching Elice from a few feet off. The Council had decided to assign separate guards to her and Marth. He had to keep himself from daydreaming about her; after all, a soldier who wasn't thinking clearly was no good body guard at all.

Elice looked up at the sky from where she stood, palms against the side railing, aware of the presence that watched her from behind. Some may have found it a little strange to be watched so, but for her it was nothing abnormal. She was a princess. Things such as this had happened more times than she could recount.

Rex wished it wasn't so much of a formal situation. He would love to just talk to her, with no worries of duties or ranks, but he knew it couldn't happen. _I should be used to the life of a soldier by now..._ Yet suddenly he wasn't. He had once _thought_ he was, but as time went on, things seemed to change. And now that he had met Elice... it was as if _everything_ had changed.

Elice turned her head to look back, noticing the look on his face. "Is everything alright, Rex?" she asked, turning.

Rex snapped out of his gaze, coming back to partial reality. "Everything's fine, Milady."

Elice looked at him for a moment longer. "Is something troubling you?"

"No, Milady," he replied quickly. _Why would she want to hear anyway..._

Elice gazed at him a moment longer before sighing to herself. She knew he was lying. But she couldn't press him. The hem of her dress gently grazed the ground beneath her as she walked a little ways before sitting down on the wide rim of a fountain. She let the tip of her index finger brush the quivering water. "It's beautiful here," she told him.

_Not as beautiful as you are..._ "Yes, it is." Rex stayed where he was, turning his head to where she was now.

Elice looked down at the marble beneath her. Her mind flickered back to several nights ago. The memories came back surprisingly clear.

_"It's so beautiful out here," she said._

_"So are you... I-I mean, you're right," Rex stuttered._

Her mind lingered on the last line for a while as she continued to trail her finger along the water.

Rex gazed at her, letting his mind wander and dream again. He began to wonder if it really had been a _good_ idea for him to be Elice's body guard. Not that he would have it any other way...

Elice dipped her head down a bit more, her bangs falling into her face, still thinking about their first evening. _Is that what's troubling him?_ The more she thought about it, the more certain she became. He either regretted how he had acted, and to be in such a position for him now was awkward... or he still had the same feelings for her he did those few nights ago.

If there were times that Rex wished he was a Jedi, now was definitely one of them. He wished he knew what she was thinking... maybe it would give him some sort of comfort or confirmation... or maybe it would just give him a moment to forget that no matter how much he liked her, or how good of friends they ever came to be, he'd never be able to spend time with her because of his life as a soldier. _I am a loyal soldier above all else. Right...?_

Standing up slowly, Elice smoothed her dress. "If it's alright, I'd like to go back to my room," she said gently.

Rex nodded. "Certainly. I'll escort you."

She smiled a little. "Thank you."

Rex walked with her to her room, attempting to keep his mind in the here and now, and not off somewhere in his imagination.

"I appreciate what you and the Council are doing to protect me and my brother," Elice said as they walked.

"Just doing our job, Milady," he replied.

"I still appreciate it." There was silence for a few moments before she spoke again. "You remind me of one of my personal guards back home."

"Interesting," he said. He also paused for a moment. "What is it like where you come from?"

Elice thought for a moment. "A bit different than it is here," she said. "Naboo had some similarities to some of the lands."

"Mh." Rex fell silent again, not knowing what else to say.

Elice was silent as well. "Would you care to come in for a while?" she offered as they reached her room.

Rex hoped that he didn't visibly go red, because he felt his cheeks heat up a little as she spoke. For a split second his mind was filled with the many possible answers to her offer.

_Why not?_

_ Sure._

_ I suppose._

_ Well, I am your body guard._

"I'd love to." He blinked as he realized he'd said that out loud.

Elice smiled and held the door open for him. Maybe she was right. Maybe he did still have the same feelings for her.

Rex walked into her room. _Maybe just for the moment, I can forget about being a soldier, and be a normal person... Just for this one time._

Elice sat down. "What's it like being a captain, Rex? I know how it is back in Altea, but here things seem a bit different."

Staying standing so he wouldn't make her feel awkward, Rex thought for a moment. "It's probably very different from your captains, Milady. Clones are engineered to follow orders, and don't really have a choice otherwise..." He trailed off before continuing. "Being a captain is alright. General Skywalker is one of the best generals out there, and it's an honor to serve him. He's a little reckless sometimes, but we always get the job done."

Elice was silent for a moment. "Do you enjoy it?"

_I thought I did... but now that I've met you, I'm not so sure..._ "Yes, I enjoy it, most of the time. It's hard though, never knowing which day will be your last... but I would lay my life down for victory of the Republic."

"I feel the same way for my kingdom... and my brother. And, ever since she became a part of our family, Amara as well." Elice pressed her hands together in her lap before looking up again. "Would you care to sit down, Rex?"

"If you wouldn't mind..." He trailed off again.

"Of course not." She smiled.

Rex smiled also, and sat down. "Thank you."

"Of course." She brushed her bangs away from her eyes.

Rex stared at her for a moment, before quickly glancing away so he wouldn't make her uncomfortable by his gaze. His mind wandered again.

Elice looked down a little as she saw his quickly-fleeting gaze. "Rex... about that night on Naboo..." Normally if such a situation had happened with anyone else, she wouldn't bring it up again. But something made her want to ask him.

"Yeah...?" The tone of his voice suggested he wanted her to continue.

"Did you mean what you said before?" She looked up, meeting his gaze.

Rex stared into her eyes. "Yes, of course I meant it..." He trailed off almost dreamily.

Elice stared back, blinking slowly as she felt her heartbeat quicken and warmth rise up inside of her. _WHAT am I DOING?_ She startled a little. As quick as the moment had fallen upon her, it was gone. Everything flooded back to her mind. Their positions. Their responsibilities. The fact that they belonged to two entirely different worlds. _No. No. Why is my guard so low all of a sudden? It couldn't work between us anyway... we might as well be Romeo and Juliet. It would just end it heartbreak._

Rex continued to gaze at her, all uncertainties in his mind fading away. He knew it wouldn't change anything, that real life would still be real life. But for the moment, he forgot about everything.

Elice dared to glance at him again. They hardly knew each other! And yet... something seemed to fit between them. Something felt so right._Have we both gone for so long without love that our guards are worn down?_ She exhaled shakily.

After a moment, Rex was able to break the stare. Coming back to reality, in a sense, his mind filled with similar thoughts as hers, without knowing that she thought them as well.

Elice ran a hand through her hair. The silence was almost unbearable. She looked over at him again. The look on his face was similar to what she felt. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking...?" The sentence hung in the air. She hardly remembered forming it on her lips, nor saying it.

Rex felt soft chills run down his spine; not knowing if it was from her words, or the sound of her beautiful voice. "I don't know, Milday. I certainly wouldn't know."

"I... Rex..." Her tongue felt twisted, refusing to work, which only made her feel flustered.

He stood up as well. "I should go..."

She was too tongue-tied to answer him.

"I'll be nearby if you need me. If anything happens, just call." He took her hand in his, placed a comlink into her palm, and closed her fingers around it. He held onto her hand a split second longer. And though it was really no more than a half second, it felt longer...

Elice could only stare down at the comlink in silence. His hand was warm against hers. She tried to respond to him, but nothing came.

Letting go of her hand gently, Rex walked towards the door. "Have a pleasant evening, Milady."

Elice watched as he left. "Goodnight," she managed to whisper long minutes after he had departed.

**What'll happen next for our smitten couple? And how will Anakin and Ahsoka go about saving Amara? Will they be too late? I hope not! Hang in there for 17. (Don't forget to review!)**


	17. Dangerous Games

**Oh my gosh, guys. I swear this story died and had to be brought back from the dead.**

** Both Bluey and I are SO SORRY that it's been—what, 4 months?—since the last update. WE GROVEL AT THY FEET. Let us know when you forgive us so we can stop groveling and get back to work. I know, we're lazy-butts. But now that summer's here, we be bent on rappin' this little old story up within the next few months. We hope this nice long chapter will be satisfying for y'all.**

** Ok, personally, the scene that you'll be reading with Ani, Ahsoka and the clones was my favorite to edit so far. Bluey wrote that entire thing herself and it couldn't be more awesome. Appreciate it! She made it so epic because she loves you guys!**

**No questions, so…**

**Ok, I'll keep you waiting no longer. Go read! -Liv**

_**Chapter 17**_

_**Dangerous Games**_

Amara's breathing was labored. She longed to have her arms unrestrained, to try to shield herself from the torture Dooku put her through. To be rid of the hazy, drugged confusion that kept her from remembering the words of magic that ran in her veins. She had lost track of time long ago as they attempted to torture her into submission. She managed to continue to resist, but there was one small problem that was slowly weakening her efforts.

And that problem was Dooku would not give up.

She had been through torture before. But there was something about it this time that was more bent on breaking her than any other time.

The door to the cell opened, for what may have seemed like the hundredth time. Dooku entered, staring coldly at his prisoner. "Have you decided to cooperate yet?" he asked for the tenth time today, almost mockingly.

Amara let her eyelids fall, not replying to his words. She knew he was well aware of her answer.

"Things would be so much easier for you if you would join me..." Dooku walked around to the other side of the cell. "The power of the Dark Side is great, and with your power, even stronger. You could rule the _entire galaxy_."

His words echoed off the walls and in her head. "You think I have not heard words like yours before?" she managed to murmur without raising her head. "Your tongue is the birthing place of the lies that you use to force the world around you to submit, and I will not fall prey to your supposed offers of glory."

"'Supposed'? The Sith already control the galaxy, though you may not see it. It is only a matter of time before the entire Republic crumbles within our grasp. Then everyone will truly see who the more powerful side is. Make the choice now, and you won't have to suffer the consequences of being on the wrong side when the time comes..."

"Whether one side crumbles or not is not the point. And I will not stand down and let you use me for what I resent, whether it is doomed or not."

Dooku flicked his cape slightly, allowing it to flow around himself. "This conversation is not over," he stated, and without giving her a chance to reply—though he was quite sure she wouldn't anyway—he left the cell, closing the door quickly behind him and going into his own private chambers.

As he left, Amara felt a warm tingling feeling grow in her body. For a split second her mind panicked, then she regained herself and shut her eyes as the latest wave of torture burned through the very cells of her body and her voice cried out in agony. It would be a long time before it would stop again.

…

The mid-afternoon sun shone across the surface of the Republic cruiser as it rose into the atmosphere. Anakin looked out the window, deep in thought. Where would Dooku have taken her…

"Do we know where we're going, Sir?" asked Fives.

"I've got some ideas," Anakin stated. "Wait for my signal." He turned to Ahsoka, who was standing next to him. "Do you sense it too?"

Ahsoka was silent for a moment. Amara's Force presence was stronger than some—maybe on account of her abilities. But right now, her entire being was surrounded by a thick cloud of the Dark Side. Not consumed, but fully engulfed, making her presence foggy and hard to track.

Just as she was about to pull herself out of her state of deep focusing to answer her master, Ahsoka caught hold of Amara's presence enough to obtain the faintest hint of a location. "I can sense her, Master… but the location I'm getting—I don't recognize it."

Anakin nodded slowly. "Let's check the coordinates and see where it takes us." He and Ahsoka went over to the holographic table, and she used the location she had found to input coordinates into the data screen on the side of the table.

The system took only a brief second to process the information before the holographic image of the planet was emitted.

Ahsoka looked at the information that came up with the image. "Ziost," she read, and began to skim through the description. "Dark forests… covered in ice… focal point of the Dark Side…"

"Sounds like a place Dooku would be to me," Anakin quipped and went directly back to the bridge, Ahsoka following a second after. "Set course for Ziost," he told the clone who was in charge of the hyperspace controls. _Just hang on, Amara. We're coming._

…

It was evident before cruiser even touched the ground on Ziost that it was not a pleasant place to be.

"According to our scanners," Ahsoka told Anakin and the clones as they scanned the area from a far distance, "there are hundreds of droids patrolling the dense forest around one certain area."

"No doubt that's where they're keeping Amara," Anakin murmured, thinking aloud.

Ahsoka nodded and continued. "Because of the forest, it's going to be impossible to land close enough to our point of target here." She pointed to a spot on the map which had the most droid activity. "Our best bet would be to land a good distance away, and make our way through the forest on foot."

Anakin continued to study the map. "The droids appear to be pretty active; they may be more advanced than just battle droids. It's clear that Dooku doesn't want anyone getting in—or out. Be on high alert."

"The weather conditions are nearly below freezing," Ahsoka added. "Make sure you're prepared and wearing proper gear."

Anakin looked at the scanner one last time to make sure they hadn't missed anything. "The cruiser will land in a matter of minutes. Be ready to depart on my signal. Dismissed." He and Ahsoka watched as they left. "The snow gear is in the storage room. Come with me to grab it."

Ahsoka nodded and followed him to the store room filled with boxes of food rations, weapons, ammo, and harsh weather supplies. "The cold isn't the only unpleasant thing here," she murmured. The presence of the Dark Side on this planet was stronger than she'd felt in a while.

Anakin agreed, but was able to make a joke out of it. "Who says the cold isn't pleasant? You obviously haven't grown up on a scorched planet." He laughed dryly and continued to search the box labels for the container he needed.

Ahsoka raised an eyebrow and hopped up onto a crate, sitting on the edge. "Uh huh… but weren't the nights cold?" If she could recall correctly, desert areas generally had very hot days, but relatively chilly nights.

"I guess." Anakin shrugged, ending the conversation. He finally found the box he needed and took out his winter gear, then tossed Ahsoka hers. She caught it mid-air and slid the coat onto her arms.

No sooner had they finished getting their winter gear on when the landing signal was heard.

Within the next minute, everyone was waiting by the landing platform as it opened, and Ahsoka and Anakin—along with two battalions of clone troopers—ran off the platform into the icy air and frostbitten ground.

Just a breath of the air was enough to make their senses flare, the invigorating sensation of frozen air being inhaled, as well as the bone-chilling and odd feeling that was felt as soon as their feet hit the ground.

Anakin signaled the group to start moving, and they all made their way just far enough into the forest so that they were concealed. The Republic cruiser took off again, going to wait hidden somewhere farther off so as to not give their location away.

Once the cruiser was out of sight, the group began to move out deeper into the forest, keeping a sharp eye out for droids.

Their footsteps were almost entirely silent as they walked cautiously through the ice-laden trees across the frozen mass beneath. However, their silence was hardly the strange part. It was the silence that engulfed them. Even Fives, using the scanners on his helmet, was not able to get a reading on any droids.

_ It's too quiet…_ It was at times like these when Anakin truly wished that the Force was able to help detect nonliving objects. It would make things easier.

Ahsoka snapped to attention suddenly, pressing back against a tree and pulling her lightsabers to her hands, though she kept them deactivated. Keeping the fingers of her other hand wrapped around the hilt of her shoto, she brought a finger to her lips, silencing the rest of them. Turning slightly, she looked out to the other side of the tree.

Anakin and the clones took cover and began to watch in the same direction.

Their eyes came upon a squad of around a dozen commando droids patrolling the area.

Whirling around, Anakin spotted another squad in the opposite direction.

They hadn't been sighted. Yet.

Suddenly, with a burst of laser fire, everything seemed to happen at once. Several commando droids jumped from the trees, flying to the ground at lightning speed. A couple more drew their knives and began attacking the group relentlessly. By that time, the nearby squads had been alerted and approached as well, raising the commando droid count to almost thirty.

Ahsoka drove her lightsaber through the middle of one commando droid, simultaneously kicking another backwards and finishing it off by sending the deactivated droid crashing into the other.

Both droids collided with a tree in a burst of smoke and sparks, joining the other droids which had fallen before them. Sparks hit the trees faster than the previous sparks could go out, but the icy atmosphere and layer of frost blanketing each tree from the leaves to the roots made it impossible for even the smallest forest fire to spring up.

Despite the rapid destruction of commando droids by the Jedi and clones, the squads had barely even begun to diminish. Rapidly the tide began to turn towards the enemies' favor as the number of clones was knocked down slowly, one death at a time.

Bounding up into the trees, Ahsoka surveyed the battle from above. They needed to come up with a better strategy, fast. There had to be a weak point in their defense line somewhere.

The droids took notice of Ahsoka's presence up in the tree, and the very structure of the tree became marred as it was eaten away by laser fire. Several swift lightsaber swings were all she needed to deflect and defend herself, though she began to compromise her balance. As another droid approached with a rocket launcher and aimed straight for the crown of the tree, Ahsoka struggled to remain on the branch. In a desperate move, she leapt straight out of the tree. The tree exploded, sending shards of wood and half-melted frozen bits to the ground below within a several-yard radius.

Ahsoka barely managed to grab hold of another slippery branch and stop her fall. Her heart pounding from the adrenaline of the moment, she dropped to the ground, landing gracefully with the aid of the Force.

Roughly a half mile away, Anakin was facing troubles of his own. He and the rest of the group had gradually been forced back by the constant flow of droids, now coming upon a cliff-like gorge.

"Move forward men!" Anakin fiercely jerked his lightsaber in a long, sideways arc to save himself from the oncoming blaster fire. The last thing he wanted was to lose men by way of a steep, downhill fall. But the option of advancing was almost immediately cut off.

"Plant your cables on the near side of the cliff, we'll descend the wall and draw them to us!" Anakin didn't wait for anyone to go before him, bounding up into the clouds, then plummeting straight down to the rocks below. Adrenaline pulsating through his veins, he stopped himself with the Force a split second before crashing to his death.

It was only mere seconds before the clones completed their descent down the cliff and met with Anakin where he stood.

The droids were no slower. Like flaming arrows the blaster fire rained down into the ravine. What the droids were slow on was the new advantages granted to the clones and Jedi general a hundred feet below. The distance alone made it hard to fire accurately, even for a droid, and it would take time to get snipers out there. Another advantage came from the cliffs themselves; countless crevices and small caves which provided excellent shelter. Now if only they could draw the droids in.

Anakin knew for a fact that the droids wouldn't simply give up after he and his men disappeared into the rocky refuge, particularly with the level of security which was currently illustrated. No, they would come. That was for certain.

…

The smell of overheated circuits and melted metal smoking on the icy ground burned in Ahsoka's nose as she slashed her lightsaber at yet another droid. There were so many, she had lost count a while ago. Memories flickered through her mind.

_"How many droids have you shot down so far?"_

_ "Twenty… five!"_

_ "Ah, you're falling behind!"_

If only there was time for such lighthearted games. The progression of this war was not kind to anyone, and the longer it went on, the wearier everyone's hearts seemed to become. Maybe that was it. No time for anything lighthearted when everyone's hearts are weighed down so much…

"Stay on target," she told herself under her breath as a laser whizzed past her head.

_"So, Master, what was your total?"_

_ A pause. "Not now, Ahsoka."_

_ "What? Afraid you lost this time?"_

_ A small sigh. "Fine. Fifty-five, that's my count. You?"_

_ Her grin widened. "Sixty. Looks like I won…"_

She was forced to snap out of the constantly flowing memories as several trees exploded around her. The Padawan was thrown to the ground by the shock wave, skidding across the ice.

_"C'mon, youngling."_

_ "Padawan…!"_

Her heart began to race, even above the intense rush of adrenaline from the battle. Just moments before she was melted by blaster fire, she scrambled off the ground and ran. It was clear to her now that there were other battles going on besides the one she physically fought. The Dark Side was showing itself as crystal clear as the ice that blanketed the trees.

Chilled to the bone, though her face dripped with sweat, Ahsoka sprinted off to find the others. She knew that if it was about to try and batter her down to defeat, it must not be any easier for them.

…

Ten minutes… twenty minutes… thirty minutes… Anakin was beginning to question whether or not the droids really were coming. It had been a full half hour. No one had said a word, nor moved. Breathing was slow: _In… out… in… out…_

"Something's up," Anakin mumbled, mostly to himself. A couple of clones snapped their heads up, startled by the sudden voice after so many long moments of silence. It had been too long since Ahsoka had contacted him, so he took out his comlink and fingered the buttons. Nothing seemed to happen. "Blasted thing," he muttered.

"What's wrong, Sir?" Fives asked, straightening up slightly from the wall he'd been leaning against.

"Comlink's out. I can't tell if it's frozen or if we're being jammed."

"Either is likely."

Anakin grunted. "We need to find Ahsoka and regroup. I'll go out and scout the area. The droids could still be there, waiting for us to leave." He exited the cave and looked up, squinting in the oddly dim sunlight.

No droids on either side of the cliff tops, unless they were hiding. He'd expected at least a sniper droid… a lookout… something. But there was nothing.

A fierce wind began to whip around him through the gorge, strong enough to wipe someone clean off their feet if they weren't on guard. But he was. Keeping his feet firmly planted Anakin looked around again.

The wind blew again, sounding its mournful moan against the cracks along the rocky walls. Something whispered to him to get out of there, now. He began to press against the wind, trudging back towards the cave and his men. The pressure was unnerving. Tears flew off his face in the wind as the cold blasts made his eyes water; the constant desire of a handhold to pull forward slipped further away.

Isolation. Was that what this was going to come to? It couldn't. Could it? After all, it was just wind. Wind; that was all. Right?

But things aren't always what they seem.

The mighty hand of the wind continued to restrict and press him back. He felt like a child trying to get somewhere, and the hand of someone older and stronger holding him back—just enough to keep him from reaching his destination.

Frosted leaves whipped by like bullets, and the wind seemed to still increase. Yet Anakin pressed on. He could feel the Dark Side. He knew it was trying to stop him. And that's when he knew what he needed to do.

Keeping his feet as firmly on the ground as he could, he called upon the Force around him. The sky blacked out in a blinding flash, leaving the entire area in darkness. Leaves rustled, the wind continued howling, distant cries of unknown creatures sounded in alarm. At last Anakin released the blast he had created, and a shock wave of the Force was sent out, silencing the wind in an instant. The rocks creaked and groaned. Leaves floated down like a gentle rainfall.

Then, there was silence. Complete, eerie silence.

Satisfied with the outcome, Anakin returned to the cave. His men look petrified with terror. "The wind's over, let's move."

No one made a reply.

Anakin could sense deceit. He walked up to Fives. "Fives…"

No response.

He reached out and touched Fives' armor. It was stone cold. He slipped off his helmet and stared at his face.

Fives's eyes were dark… hazy… as if in some sort of trance.

Instinctively, Anakin dropped the helmet and backed up a few steps. What happened to them?

The air grew colder, if that was even possible, and Anakin ran from the cave.

Something had taken place while he had battled the wind. A dark, sinister trick of the Dark Side.

"There's only one way to stop all this madness and return things to normal," he murmured to himself. "Find Amara."

**Sorry there was no Relice in this chapter. Hopefully there will be some in the next one.**

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**(If you don't know who Cherry is, you obviously haven't been reading NSNW4)**


	18. Divide and Conquer

**Wazzap, Homies! (It be Liv) After much writing on Bluey's part (although I did some writing too) and editing on mine, chapter 18 is here! In fact, so much was done that we've got most of the material for chapter 19 written and edited as well! Cool, huh? You can expect it to be out sometime next week hopefully.**

**Pergjithshme: "WHAT ON EARTH HAS HAPPENED TO FIVES? What will happen with Relice?" A: Like we're telling! Hang tight and you'll find out for yourself pretty soon.**

**_Emblem Star_**

**_Chapter 18: Divide and Conquer_**

The morning sun seemed brighter than usual as Elice gazed out the window of her room. She had spent most her waking hours since last night thinking. Trying to convince herself that it wasn't a good idea. Reminding herself of all the reasons love couldn't exist between her and Rex, that they _couldn't_ be together.

It wasn't working.

With a sigh she finally gave up for the moment and stood. If they were both in Altea, it would have more of a chance; nobles had married knights before. But here... from what snippets of information she had heard, the Jedi forbade relationships past the status of friends. And they seemed to believe it was a good rule to follow. She didn't agree.

Elice sighed again and went to the other room to pour herself something to drink. She liked Rex. It was incredibly clear he liked her as well. But what she didn't understand was _why_. Why the feelings had bloomed so quickly between them when they never had with anyone else for her before.

_You've never met anyone like him before._

Taking a slow drink, Elice pondered the thought. There was a warmness to Rex that made her feel at ease. There were few people she knew with warmness like that.

Elice stood, placing the cup aside. She needed someone to talk to about it. _No,_ she thought, _not about this._ She didn't want anyone to know about her feelings for Rex. But just talking to someone could help.

Rex stood guard outside her room. He didn't dare knock or make his presence known to her. Not after last night.

No matter how much he liked her, he knew it wouldn't really make a difference. Rules were rules. He couldn't just leave to be with her, and even if he could it would be a bad idea. Just like she couldn't stay.

His attention was caught as he heard a noise from the other side of the door and straightened, turning as it slid open. He held his hand to his forehead in salute.

Elice was caught a little off-guard to find him standing there. _How long has he been out here...?_ "Good morning, Rex," she said, dipping her head.

"Good morning, Milady." Rex nodded as well and dropped his hand back to his side.

"If it's alright, I'd like to find my brother and talk to him."

Rex nodded again. "Certainly, Milady. I'll escort you."

"Thank you."

Silence fell as they walked, neither of them knowing what to say until Elice spoke up. "Rex...?"

"Yes?" He turned to her.

She looked at him. "I appreciate your formal gestures, but... I'd prefer it if you simply called me Elice." She smiled.

Relaxing slightly, Rex smiled back at her. "Of course, Elice."

…

Marth stared at his hands as he sat on the rim of the garden fountain. There were dark circles under his eyes from lack of sleep the previous night, and every so often his hands shook noticeably. He looked up as he heard a pair of footsteps. "_Onee-chan_," he said as Elice walked towards him.

Elice smiled. She sat down next to him and looked up at Rex and Marth's guard. "You two may go. We will call if we need you." The two clones nodded and walked off to the farthest end of the garden, near the gate and out of hearing range.

"How are you?" she asked once they were gone.

"Honestly?" he said, staring at a tree.

Despite the fact that it was a rhetorical question, Elice answered him. "Yes." She touched his hand gently.

Marth swallowed. "I'm afraid, Elice. So afraid… that I'll never see her again…" He looked over at his older sister. "I wish I had never let her go on that mission." He laughed a little, choking on built-up emotion. "But I guess it's a little late to change that, isn't it?"

"Have faith in the Jedi, Marth," Elice told him gently. "They want her back safely as much as you do."

"But they don't love her like I do." Marth buried his head in his hands, unable to control himself any longer as a sob escaped his throat.

Elice closed her eyes, sliding her hand over his shoulder. She held his own hand tightly with her free one and whispered to him soothingly. Long minutes passed before he straightened up a little. "I'm fine now," he reassured her.

Elice folded her hands in her lap, still a little worried about him. She was just as concerned about Amara as he was, but she knew he was taking it much worse. Amara was his wife, after all.

"Seems like ever since we met, someone is always getting captured," Marth said quietly.

Elice watched him run a hand through his hair. "Did you fall in love with her right away when you first met, Marth?"

"It happened… pretty fast," he said. "We were thrown into each other's lives so quickly, and I'm pretty sure I liked her from the first day I met her." He looked up at the sky. "And then ten months later I proposed." The smallest smile appeared on his face.

Elice took in his words, comparing his story with hers. _It happened pretty fast._ "What would you have done if you two had to split ways shortly after you met?"

Marth closed his eyes. "Regretted not spending at least one night with her, probably."

Elice fell silent. The two of them watched a flower nod in the breeze, letting the sun warm them and the gentle wind blow away their restless thoughts.

…

The constant clashes and clicks of footsteps on the frosted ground were just enough to keep Ahsoka sane as she ran through the forest of ice. The pounding of her heart rushed through her head; the air was clouded with puffs of steamy fog every time she released a ragged breath.

_Can't stop now… I have to find the others…_

Her mind was starting to believe her heart couldn't beat any faster when a forceful pulse of energy exploded somewhere far off. The sky snapped into complete darkness.

So lost in the oppressive pull of the Dark Side, she wasn't on guard with her senses, and was shaken to the core by the sudden blast. Her knees gave way and she collapsed, her heart nearly bursting from her chest.

For the moment, she was mostly convinced the droids were nowhere near, and allowed herself a moment, gasping and panting on her hands and knees, struggling to regain her composure. Fear crept its way around the corners of her mind, inching further out of the shadows. Waiting for the right moment to strike. To devour its prey.

The dark, starless sky engulfed the area. The only light came from a mysterious circle of light in the sky—a solar eclipse frozen in passing. It refused to move on; it was almost as if time had stopped.

Feeling suddenly subconscious, Ahsoka looked up from where she had been staring at the ground. The shadows seemed to shift, and the trees appeared to sway and move, circling around her. Yet still the world was silent.

She whirled around, certain something was there. "I know you're there!" she shouted into the darkness, her voice echoing in the night. "Show yourself!"

Nothing.

Pushing herself to her feet, she glanced in every direction. She hadn't even a hint of where she was. She was lost, and alone. And afraid.

Afraid.

_Who says I'm afraid. Jedi aren't supposed to feel fear._

If only that were true.

…

Anakin had begun to scale the side of the ravine as soon as he left the cave. He would have to leave the clones for now; there was no other option. At the moment, his goal was finding Ahsoka. After all, without Ahsoka he would have no chance of helping the clones or rescuing Amara.

_This mission just keeps on escalating…_

He walked past endless darkened trees, the chilling wind swirling around him like a ghost, as if reminding him of their previous bout. With time seemingly frozen, the sky remained dark, giving him no sense of how long he'd been walking.

Suddenly, the sound of footsteps pricked his senses. His head snapped around to the source of the noise. A flash whirled by the trees in the distance.

Wondering if the mystery figure could be the key to stopping all of the madness, Anakin ran after it.

As the figure realized it was being followed, it bolted into the trees again, swerving violently through the maze of forest.

Anakin slammed his feet against the ground with every step, chasing the figure with what energy he had.

In a whirlwind of turns, black trees, and crisp ice, both Anakin and the figure came into a large, open, frost-laden patch of land.

_Nowhere to run now, mystery man…_

The figure stopped running, and almost subconsciously, Anakin did as well. They stood, roughly twenty feet apart, staring at each other.

Now that they weren't running, Anakin could get a good look at it. The figure was sleek and shadowy. Its slender body was entirely black, and appeared two-dimensional. The only prominent feature it owned were two glowing, red eyes—eyes that stared him down in a way that struck his core with an eerie fear. The Dark Side radiated around the figure.

A Sith warrior.

Without giving another thought, even to the aura of the Dark Side that surrounded himself as well, Anakin ignited his lightsaber and made the first move. He dashed forward and slashed his lightsaber at the Sith warrior.

Before Anakin could reduce the distance between them to even ten feet, the Sith pulled out two black lightsaber hilts and ignited their deep, crimson blades. Swinging the blades in a blinding arc, Anakin's lightsaber was blocked. The Sith took a backwards leap, and while in the air flipped its lightsabers around in its hands. The lightsaber in its left hand deactivated as it landed, and it placed its hand on the ground to steady itself. Standing and reigniting the second lightsaber, it rushed forward at Anakin again, seeming powered by the Dark Side.

Anakin countered. The Dark Side was surging around him, and beginning to creep its way into the secret, hidden places of his mind. He clenched his teeth, feeling it eat away at his conscious like a deadly parasite. Absorbed in the moment, he gave in. A powerful blast of the Force sent the Sith warrior flying through the air, and it hit the ground hard, skidding nearly five feet, both lightsabers deactivated from the attack.

Anakin charged across the icy field, weapon forcefully leading the way. Caught up to the Sith, he sliced his lightsaber through the air at lightning speed.

The Sith bounded off the ground not a split second too late, and both lightsabers were ignited just in time to block the blow. In the mere moments of pause that occur after a heavy blow, the Sith retaliated with several quick blows to Anakin's blade.

Anger was very present by this point. The Dark Side had fully taken hold of Anakin's mind. And like an addiction, once it was started, it wouldn't stop.

_What am I DOING? !_

He tried to go back and draw himself out of the pull of the Dark Side, but it was too overpowering. His hands moved without his will, heart pumping blood saturated with spreading anger. He was stuck, fighting this Sith warrior, with no end in sight.

There was only one way out, Anakin reasoned, and that was to go along with it. He could draw himself out of the Dark Side if he just finished this one fight. He thought.

While his thoughts were off in their own place, his body continued to battle the Sith warrior, and he seemed to be gaining the upper hand.

Allowing his mind to be consumed, Anakin embraced the power which rushed through him.

He had to admit, it felt good.

He focused the power to his hand and began to lift the Sith warrior off the ground in a violent choke hold.

The Sith struggled desperately to escape. Lightsabers clinked loudly as they fell to the ground and shadowy hands shot up to its throat.

Anakin held it there, smirking to himself as his power increased. The good left in his mind was being consumed, and its cries were no longer heard.

One last little piece screamed out to him. _STOP!_

His body obeyed the commanding voice, and Anakin dropped the Sith to the ground.

The blackened mist in the air that had existed around them during their fight began to dissolve, and along with the mist, the black shadow of the figure began to fade. The figure ceased to be the voiceless black silhouette it had been just moments before.

Anakin stared down at the person collapsed on the ground choking and gasping for breath, and terror struck deep into him stronger than he had ever felt in his life.

"AHSOKA? !"

…

Every beat of her heart sent another wave of pain pulsing through her veins. It had almost become natural to Amara now. It never seemed to stop unless Dooku came to talk to her, and even then it was only dulled, not completely stopped. They kept her alive through the tubes that extended from the wall and into the backs of her shoulders, arms, and back, feeding her whatever it was that caused her agony, the drugs that made her magic unreachable, and the liquid equivalent of food through it. She could not refuse. She could not struggle. She could not commit suicide should it ever come to that for the Republic's sake; her binds prevented such hopes.

Her voice had given out long ago from screaming. Every so often her throat would emit a hoarse moan, but she made no other sound. She no longer bothered with talking when Dooku came.

Amara's tongue was thick and her mouth dry, which added greatly to her discomfort. They were probably feeding her water through her tubes as well, but she still craved to have it run down her throat, which would give her at least a little relief. She had found a small outlet for her torture, though. If she focused enough, she could slip into unconsciousness, which helped to a degree until she awoke again.

She thought of Marth, and a wave of helplessness washed over her. What was he doing right now? She doubted anyone knew where she was. Rescue seemed a false hope she was not willing to fall for, lest it be what broke her into submission.

Another roll of pain washed through her. Closing her eyes, she dismissed herself to what had become sleep once again, silently wishing this time she would never wake up.

…

Ahsoka was coughing too hard to hear her name being shouted at first. Her head pounded after being restricted the oxygen she so badly needed. Finally she managed to open her eyes, though still coughing, and looked up to see Anakin standing over her. Her eyes widened even more.

"You—! How—how could you? !" she screamed hoarsely, scrambling off the ground and backing away, gasping raggedly.

"Ahsoka—I—I didn't know it was you!" Anakin cried, still staring down at her, struck with terror.

Tears pricked her eyes and she stared back at him. "What's wrong with you? !" Her voice cracked, partially from the violent choke hold and partially from her rising emotion.

"I… I…" Anakin could find his voice no longer, feeling terrible.

Ahsoka's voice dropped to a scratchy whisper. "You were consumed with the Dark Side." She rubbed her neck gingerly and swallowed hard. Without another word, she ran deep into the forest, away from him. The tears which had built up in her eyes spilled out and poured down her cheeks, sprinkling the ground with salty drops where they fell, small and far apart.

Her mind flickered back to the fight that had just taken place. Anakin had appeared darkened and evil. His eyes had been completely red; his features had darkened to shadows. She hadn't even known it was him. Yet, in the swirl of the Dark Side around the two of them, she could feel him absorbing it while she pushed out the temptation. As soon as he had begun to choke her, she had thought that she'd seen Anakin's face flicker across the dark figure, but the next second, it was gone.

She couldn't believe it.

Her throat burned and her quiet sobs only made her breathing become heavier. Starting to feel dizzy, she collapsed next to a tree and hugged her knees to her chest. She felt traumatized by the fact that the dark figure she had fought was her master. And even more that he had used the Dark Side to his advantage the way he did.

This planet is bad news…

The tears streaming down her face dripped onto the ground and froze within seconds. Ahsoka knew in her mind that the Dark Side would use any tricks it needed to; the Separatists depended on that to keep Amara trapped. After a long moment she stood up shakily and began to walk again.

_ I will find Amara, even if it means I have to do it by myself. _

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